The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected lumbosacral strain and degenerative disc disease is being remanded due to inadequate VA examination reports. The RO must ensure that the examinations are in compliance with the directives of this remand.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not consider the presence of pain and its effect on the veteran's functional use of his low back, which may have affected the assessment of his disability level.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbosacral strain, degenerative disc disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 30, 2001
- Citation
- 0102587
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0102587.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbosacral strain and lumbar radicopathy, right side, secondary to the lumbosacral strain.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbosacral strain, finding that the Veteran's low back injury occurred during a period of active duty for training (ADT) and continued therefrom.
- Dismissed
The appeals for restoration of ratings and for a higher disability rating were dismissed as the April 2025 rating decision did not make final decisions on these issues.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, with the exception of remanding certain issues.
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