The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar strain (low back) disability, left ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, and right ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain. The evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under any applicable diagnostic codes.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed that the Veteran's range of motion in his low back was limited to 60 degrees during examination, which is within the normal range specified by VA regulations. His ankle disabilities were also rated based on their specific limitations without additional functional loss due to pain or other factors.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar strain (low back), left ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, right ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19128687
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,020 · Granted: 19% (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 19128687.
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 service connection claims for various conditions were granted effective from July 1, 2020.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal because the appellant requested to withdraw his appeal for service connection claims related to left ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, left knee strain, bilateral hearing loss, and low back injury.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for all issues related to service connection and rating decisions from February 2017, May 2019, and November 2019 due to untimely Notice of Disagreement filings.
- Denied
The Board denied earlier effective dates for service connection for various wrist and elbow conditions, finding that the Veteran did not submit the correct form within one year of receiving a decision.
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