The veteran is seeking an increased rating for his service-connected low back disability, which has been rated at 20 percent. The RO must obtain additional medical evidence and conduct further examinations to determine the appropriate rating based on the current functional limitations of the veteran's low back.
The deciding factor: The decision requires further development due to inadequate previous evaluations that did not consider pain and other functional loss during flare-ups or use over time.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of herniated nucleus pulposus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 6, 2001
- Citation
- 0117869
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 0117869.
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.
- Dismissed
The veteran has withdrawn his appeal regarding the initial ratings for herniated nucleus pulposus and left ear hearing loss, thus the case is dismissed.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the service-connected low back disability was an underlying cause of the veteran's death, and thus grants service connection for the cause of the veteran's death.
- Denied
The Board found that the veteran's disability picture is most consistent with a currently assigned 40 percent disability evaluation for degenerative disc disease of L5-S1, and thus denied an increased disability evaluation.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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