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Denied

The Board found that the reduction in the rating for the veteran's mechanical low back pain with scoliosis from 10 percent to noncompensably (zero percent) disabling was proper based on clear medical evidence showing slight subjective symptoms and no objective findings of any abnormality.

The deciding factor: The RO reduced the disability rating based on a period of more than five years without improvement in physical condition, with no new or material evidence provided.

Claimed conditions
Mechanical low back pain with scoliosis
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
January 26, 2004
Citation
0402473

Veterans Law Judge

S. L. KENNEDY

Decisions by this judge: 2,435 · Granted: 22% (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 0402473.

What this means for you

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