The Board denied a higher rating for the Veteran's service-connected spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine, finding that the evidence did not show unfavorable ankylosis and thus only a 40 percent rating was warranted.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no unfavorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar or entire spine, which is required for higher ratings under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.
- Claimed conditions
- spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- January 21, 2021
- Citation
- 21003351
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 21003351.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine is at least as likely as not related to his in-service back injury, and service connection for this condition is granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that there have been failures to comply with previous remand directives and thus the cases are being returned for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining additional medical opinions and evidence.
- Denied
The Veteran is granted a 40 percent rating for spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine prior to May 10, 2023.,A higher rating for spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine from May 10, 2023, and left lower extremity radiculopathy is denied.,The Veteran's LLE radiculopathy is granted a 20 percent rating from May 1, 2017 to August 16, 2022.,A higher rating for LLE radiculopathy from August 17, 2022, is denied.
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