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Denied

The Board denied the veteran's claims for higher ratings for his lumbar spine disorder, finding that a rating in excess of 40 percent prior to November 12, 2002 and a rating in excess of 60 percent from November 12, 2002 were not warranted.

The deciding factor: The veteran's lumbar spine disability was primarily shown as pain with slight loss of motion. As of September 23, 2002, the disability included orthopedic pathology that equated to incapacitating episodes having a total duration of at least six weeks during a 12-month period or severe orthopedic limitations including severe limitation of extension and moderately severe paraspinous muscle spasm.

Claimed conditions
lumbar spine disorder
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
40%
Decision date
November 9, 2005
Citation
0530067

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 0530067.

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