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Granted

The Veteran's service connection for a lumbar spine disorder is denied. A rating of 70 percent for PTSD from July 17, 2012 through August 15, 2016 is granted.

The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence that the low back disability was related to service and noted that there were no complaints about the lumbar spine until after service discharge. The Veteran's PTSD symptoms have caused significant impairment in work and social functioning.

Claimed conditions
lumbar spine degenerative disc disease, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
70%
Decision date
July 27, 2018
Citation
18121954

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 18121954.

What this means for you

A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.

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