The veteran's low back condition, which resulted in moderate impairment due to pain and limitation of motion, was evaluated at the initial 10 percent level. The Board denied his claim for an evaluation in excess of 20 percent on schedular grounds.
The deciding factor: The disability evaluations were based on the regular schedular standards as they did not present such an exceptional or unusual disability picture with related factors that rendered inadequate the application of the regular schedular standards.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back condition, Status post lumbar laminectomy with disc protrusion
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- March 4, 2003
- Citation
- 0303698
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 999 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0303698.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a low back condition and right shoulder rotator cuff strain, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are at least as likely as not related to his military service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for service connection for a low back condition and an acquired psychiatric disability are dismissed as procedural defects due to the overlapping nature of the appeals.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a low back condition as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right hip condition, finding that the Veteran's back pain is aggravated by his right hip surgery.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back condition, finding that it was incurred during active duty.
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