The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the right hand and wrist, as well as a neck disability, both secondary to his service-connected residuals of an injury of the right hand and wrist. The RO had previously granted service connection for these disabilities but did not consider them on a secondary basis.
The deciding factor: The veteran's complaints of pain in his right upper extremity were attributed to his service-connected injuries rather than any new or worsening conditions, thus failing to meet the criteria for secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Arthritis of the right hand and wrist, Neck disability (or cervical spine disorder)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- September 17, 2002
- Citation
- 0212317
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 0212317.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his lung cancer was related to his service-connected melanoma.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability. The claims for urinary frequency disability and residuals of a cholecystectomy were denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right lower extremity sciatica associated with the Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral spine strain, but remanded claims for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and sleep apnea.
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