The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his lumbar spine disability was denied as there is no evidence of unfavorable ankylosis. The claim for TDIU prior to August 10, 2013 was also denied due to the Veteran's ability to engage in substantially gainful employment.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran did not have unfavorable ankylosis of his thoracolumbar spine and thus could not meet the criteria for a higher disability rating. For TDIU, the evidence showed he was capable of engaging in less physically demanding work prior to August 10, 2013.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc disease (lumbar spine disability), posttraumatic stress disorder, raticulopathy of the right lower extremity, raticulopathy of the left lower extremity, chronic sinusitis, scar of the lumbar spine, chronic constipation
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- March 28, 2019
- Citation
- 19123091
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,762 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19123091.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
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