The Board denied service connection for back strain and degenerative spondylosis of the cervical spine, but granted service connection for muscle tension headaches.
The deciding factor: Medical evidence did not establish a link between the veteran's current conditions and his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Back strain, Degenerative spondylosis from C4-7, Muscle tension headaches
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 27, 2003
- Citation
- 0310020
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,012 · Granted: 24% (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 0310020.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the relationship between the Veteran's back conditions and his service. The examiner is asked to consider the Veteran's lay statements about in-service events, injuries, and symptoms.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claim of service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability, finding that the VA examination and opinion were inadequate as they did not consider the Veteran's complete medical history. The case is now to be reviewed with an addendum VA opinion.
- Granted
The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at a 40 percent evaluation, effective from the date of the May 2013 rating decision.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a higher rating for tinnitus, while remanding claims for service connection for an anxiety condition, back strain, bilateral pes planus, left shoulder condition, right knee condition, and dizziness.
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