The Veteran's low back disability is rated at 40 percent, effective from October 27, 2017. The Board has remanded several issues for additional development and clarification of the record.
The deciding factor: The decision was based on a December 2008 rating decision that granted service connection for the Veteran's low back disability and rated it at 20 percent disabling. The appeal is from this decision, with some issues being remanded for further development.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral spondylolysis fifth lumbar vertebra/first sacral vertebra with or without spondylolisthesis, status post decompression laminectomy and posterolateral spinal fusion at fifth lumbar vertebra/first sacral vertebra with hardware, sciatica right lower extremity (sciatic nerve involvement), sciatica left lower extremity (sciatic nerve involvement), sciatica right lower extremity (femoral nerve involvement), sciatica left lower extremity (femoral nerve involvement)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- January 9, 2020
- Citation
- 20001800
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,429 · Granted: 29% (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 20001800.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for bilateral spondylolysis fifth lumbar vertebra/first sacral vertebra with or without spondylolisthesis, status post decompression laminectomy and posterolateral spinal fusion at fifth lumbar vertebra/first sacral vertebra with hardware has been remanded due to the need for a travel board hearing.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
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