The Board has granted a 40 percent initial rating for the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability, taking into account functional impairment due to pain and stiffness during flare-ups. The maximum schedular rating under the General Rating Formula is awarded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran’s reports of increased back stiffness and pain were considered, but the clinical findings from the December 2018 VA examination are inconsistent with additional evidence indicating variable low back pain. Therefore, the Board resolved reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran by finding that his lumbar spine flexion motion loss more nearly approximated 30 degrees.
- Claimed conditions
- postoperative laminectomy/discectomy with scar and thoracolumbar DDD and spondylosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- April 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19133087
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,604 · Granted: 65% (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 19133087.
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.
What you can do next
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