The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the veteran's current degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is causally related to an in-service low back injury, and thus service connection for this condition is granted.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found it difficult to relate the current degenerative joint disease to the in-service injuries but also noted that there was a significant gap in medical records from service separation until 1996 when the veteran first sought treatment. The Board considered both opinions and concluded that the evidence is at least in equipoise.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease of the Lumbar Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2003
- Citation
- 0329735
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 0329735.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and chronic sinusitis. However, it granted an increased disability rating of 30 percent for left upper extremity radiculopathy.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's GERD was granted a 60 percent disability rating, and the June 15, 2020 VA Form 10182 for service connection claims was accepted as timely due to good cause shown.
- Denied
The Board denied a higher disability rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, finding insufficient evidence to support an evaluation in excess of 10 percent.
- Granted
The Veteran's low back disability was restored to a 20 percent rating effective February 24, 2022. The other issues were denied.
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