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Denied

The veteran's service-connected lumbosacral disability has been manifested by painful motion resulting in a range of motion of, at worst, forward flexion to 60 degrees, extension to 20 degrees, lateral flexion to 20 degrees bilaterally and rotation to 25 degrees bilaterally with arthritic changes at L5-S1. The criteria for an evaluation greater than 20 percent are not met.

The deciding factor: The veteran's disability does not meet the criteria for a higher rating under any applicable diagnostic codes due to lack of evidence of severe limitation of motion or other disabling symptoms such as abnormal gait, spinal contour changes, or neurological impairment.

Claimed conditions
chronic, intermittent lumbosacral pain and muscle spasms with arthritic changes at L5-S1
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
20%
Decision date
April 3, 2007
Citation
0709656

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 0709656.

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