The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for residuals of a back injury. The Board also found that the veteran's current DJD of the lumbar and cervical spine is related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that it was at least as likely as not that the veteran's current back condition, diagnosed as DJD of the cervical and lumbar spine, had its onset during service.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of back injury, degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the lumbar and cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 21, 2003
- Citation
- 0321023
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 0321023.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
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 determined that the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of back injury should be remanded due to a failure to provide a VA examination and medical opinion, which is necessary to determine if his current disability is related to his military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities from May 13, 1991 through May 11, 2010 was denied. The effective date for the grant of basic eligibility to Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35 prior to May 12, 2010 was also denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of back injury due to a lack of clarity regarding when and where he received treatment following service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal for higher ratings for his service-connected back injury and left knee disability is being remanded due to the inadequacy of previous VA examinations.
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