The Veteran's low back disability has been rated at 40 percent since October 2, 2007. The evidence does not support a higher rating based on limitation of motion or lumbosacral strain.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence shows that the Veteran's low back disability is best characterized by adverse symptomatology that equates to no more than recurring attacks with intermittent relief, which corresponds to a 40 percent evaluation under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine degenerative disc disease (low back disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- November 16, 2017
- Citation
- 1752765
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 1752765.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for several conditions, granted a 20 percent rating for chronic fatigue syndrome and a compensable rating for allergic rhinitis, but denied higher ratings for other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining updated treatment records and earnings information.
- Partly granted
The Board denied higher ratings for the Veteran's right shoulder disability, PTSD, and lumbar spine degenerative disc disease. The issues related to radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, right knee disability, and TDIU were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's low back disability, right shoulder disability, and PTSD due to lack of recent examinations and treatment records. The matters are also remanded for further efforts to obtain SSA earnings information and a new VA Form 21-8940.
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