The veteran's service-connected degenerative disk disease of the lumbar spine is currently rated at 20 percent since the effective date for the grant of service connection, and a separate 10 percent rating has been assigned for radiating pain and numbness in the lower extremities.
The deciding factor: The veteran's low back disability was found to meet the criteria for a 20% evaluation under Diagnostic Code 5292 (limitation of motion) since February 26, 2005. A separate 10% rating has been assigned for radiating pain and numbness in the lower extremities.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disk disease of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- November 24, 2006
- Citation
- 0636485
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,547 · Granted: 20% (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 0636485.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative disk disease of the lumbar spine is currently rated at 20 percent, and the Board has granted a higher rating to 40 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbar spine disability to schedule a VA examination to determine if the Veteran has intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS) and, if so, whether he has required bed rest prescribed by a physician during any 12-month period.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected low back disability was granted a 40 percent evaluation from April 15, 2015, to April 7, 2016, and from June 1, 2016, to the present. The RO also increased his evaluations for radiculopathy affecting the left sciatic nerve, right sciatic nerve, left femoral nerve, and right femoral nerve.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an effective date prior to October 31, 2018, for the award of service connection for a lumbar spine disability was denied. The earliest possible effective date is October 31, 2018.
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