The Board found that the veteran's disability did not meet the criteria for a higher than 20 percent rating based on straightening of the back, consistent with inflammatory changes and lumbosacral strain. The evidence showed limited range of motion but no ankylosis or severe symptoms.
The deciding factor: The VA examination results did not show forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine to be 30 degrees or less, nor favorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 8, 2006
- Citation
- 0603637
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (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 0603637.
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.
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The Board has found that remand is needed for the Veteran's claims due to duty to assist errors, including clarification of periods of service and obtaining relevant records. The Veteran will be afforded new medical examinations for each claimed disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims of right shoulder disability and low back disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability was granted with an effective date of January 9, 2018. The Board accepted her November 21, 2019 VA Form 20-0996 as a valid opt-in of the April 2019 SOC into the modernized review system.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal concerning diabetes and a low back disability has been dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
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