The Board denied the Veteran's appeal to restore a 60 percent rating for their service-connected back disability, finding that the change in diagnostic codes and the assignment of separate ratings for lower extremity radiculopathy represented an overall increase in benefits.
The deciding factor: The change from Diagnostic Code 5293 to 5242 did not result in a reduction in compensation as it was accompanied by increased ratings for neurological impairment, resulting in a higher combined rating than before.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine traumatic degenerative disc disease and stenosis with low back strain with bulging disc, L4-5
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 24, 2025
- Citation
- A25037816
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,050 · Granted: 32% (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 A25037816.
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- Granted
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