The Board denied the appellant's claims for increased ratings for his low back disability, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 10 percent prior to June 7, 2004 and 40 percent from June 7, 2004.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations conducted showed no more than slight limitation of motion prior to June 7, 2004, and a combined range of motion not greater than 120 degrees with muscle spasm or guarding severe enough to result in an abnormal gait or spinal contour from that date.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic Muscular Strain of the Lumbar Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- April 29, 2011
- Citation
- 1116808
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 1116808.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected lumbar spine disability has been granted, with a 60 percent rating effective June 19, 2002. The appeal is resolved in the Veteran's favor.
- Granted
The Veteran's chronic muscular strain of the lumbar spine is related to service, and the Board grants entitlement to service connection for this disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is related to his service in Somalia, and he was granted service connection for this condition. The Veteran also had an increased rating for his low back disability, which was granted effective June 7, 2004.
- Granted
The veteran's service-connected cervical and lumbar spine conditions were granted increased ratings, while the psychiatric disability claim was also granted.
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