The Board found that the veteran's disabilities of the spine, including cervical spondylosis and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, were not incurred in or aggravated by active service.
The deciding factor: There was no contemporaneous evidence of a spinal disability during service, and the VA examiner could not determine if the veteran suffered an acceleration injury to his neck during the 1965 fall that occurred in service. The weight of the evidence established that the appellant's disabilities of the spine were not present in service.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the spine, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, cervical spondylosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 6, 2006
- Citation
- 0606413
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,592 · Granted: 19% (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 0606413.
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 Veteran's hypertension, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome have been granted service connection as secondary to his service-connected disabilities. The lumbar spine disability has also been granted but the effective date is not specified.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for various conditions and ratings have been dismissed due to the Veteran withdrawing from appellate consideration in December 2025.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating for various conditions, including allergic rhinitis, sleep apnea, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, lower extremity radiculopathies, and left lower extremity radiculopathy with foot drop. The issues include determining if these conditions are related to service or other factors.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.