The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for his service-connected low back pain with degenerative changes, finding that the current evaluations adequately reflect the severity of his related symptomatology.
The deciding factor: The RO provided reasonable evaluations based on the symptoms and functional impairment described by the veteran, which were consistent with the criteria set forth in Diagnostic Code 5295 prior to September 26, 2003.
- Claimed conditions
- low back pain with degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- December 4, 2006
- Citation
- 0637642
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,467 · Granted: 18% (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 0637642.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to inconsistencies in the Veteran's reports of retirement and the need for a new extraschedular opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for consideration of an extraschedular rating for low back pain with degenerative changes, as there are symptoms not addressed in the current rating criteria.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development to obtain private medical records and a VA examination. The issues of service connection, evaluation, and TDIU are inextricably intertwined.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for increased evaluations for his service-connected low back pain with degenerative changes is being remanded due to the need for further development, including a VA examination and obtaining additional medical records.
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