The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including obtaining updated medical records and arranging for a VA examination to assess the severity of the veteran's low back disability. The RO is also instructed to consider whether an extraschedular evaluation or a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities are warranted.
The deciding factor: The case was remanded due to changes in the rating criteria for spine conditions and concerns about proper application of these revisions, as well as issues related to the severity of the veteran's low back disability and its impact on employment.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of low back strain with degenerative changes and nerve root irritation
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- July 26, 2004
- Citation
- 0420145
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0420145.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
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- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted as the evidence shows a current diagnosis of PTSD, an in-service stressor, and a medical link between the two.
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