The VA determined that the veteran's current back disability did not originate in service and denied his claim for service connection.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence of a chronic low back disability during active service, and the current degenerative joint disease was not shown to be related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute back strain, Degenerative joint disease, lumbosacral spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 26, 2002
- Citation
- 0208519
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 0208519.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for increased disability ratings and service connection claims due to a withdrawal of appeal by his authorized representative.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal for an increased rating in excess of 40 percent for degenerative joint disease, lumbosacral spine as the appellant requested to withdraw his appeal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder was denied in September 2013 due to lack of corroborated stressors. The RO reopened the claim in February 2015 and again denied it, finding no new and material evidence. The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine is remanded for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's low back disability, specifically whether it is related to service. The Veteran claims his current condition began during deployment in Iraq.
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