The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and an increased evaluation for PTSD. The Board found no current evidence of a chronic low back disability, and concluded that the veteran did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under Diagnostic Code 9411 for his PTSD.
The deciding factor: The objective medical evidence does not show a currently diagnosed low back disability, and the veteran's assertions were deemed without probative value due to lack of medical expertise. The Board also found that the current evaluation adequately reflected the severity of the veteran's PTSD symptoms.
- Claimed conditions
- arthralgia of the lumbosacral spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 20, 2006
- Citation
- 0632647
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,377 · Granted: 17% (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 0632647.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew their appeals for increased disability ratings in excess of 40 percent for arthralgia of the lumbosacral spine and for a bilateral hearing loss.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including arthralgia of the lumbosacral spine, depressive disorder, radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremity, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)/gastritis, combine to be 70 percent disabling. The Board finds that these conditions prevent the Veteran from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to his failure to appear for a scheduled hearing. He will be provided with the option of rescheduling a hearing in accordance with his request.
- Denied
The Board found no competent medical evidence linking the veteran's lumbosacral spine disorder to service, and denied his claim for service connection.
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