The Board denied the Veteran's request for an increased rating for his lumbar spine disability and did not address the issue of reopening his claim for service connection for hearing loss.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, and it did not have jurisdiction to consider the reopened hearing loss claim as no substantive appeal was filed within the required time frame.
- Claimed conditions
- Arthritis of the lumbar spine, Spondylolisthesis of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- January 31, 2014
- Citation
- 1404415
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 1404415.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for his lumbar spine condition and left lower extremity radiculopathy are being remanded due to incomplete service records and a lack of relevant VA treatment records. The Board will seek additional opinions regarding the etiology of these conditions.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's arthritis of the lumbar spine was not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period. Continuity of symptomatology is not established, and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for arthritis of the lumbar spine was denied as her disability did not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation under VA's rating schedule.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for arthritis of the lumbar spine, right ankle, left ankle, and left foot on a presumptive basis due to continuous symptoms since service separation.
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