The Board denied service connection for a low back disability and asthma, finding no evidence linking these conditions to the veteran's active duty service. The claim for tinea pedis was granted with an initial noncompensable evaluation.,Service connection for a low back disability was not established as it is unrelated to service or his service-connected knee disabilities. Service connection for asthma was also denied due to lack of evidence linking the condition to service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was no medical evidence showing a link between the veteran's low back disability and service, nor did any evidence suggest a relationship with asbestos exposure or other service-related factors. For asthma, the Board noted that while the veteran claimed exposure during service, there is no direct evidence linking his current condition to this period.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma, Degenerative disk disease, and chronic ligamentous and musculotendinous strain of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 20, 2006
- Citation
- 0617977
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,435 · Granted: 22% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0617977.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's asthma is currently rated as 10 percent disabling, and the Board finds that this rating adequately compensates his service-connected condition.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Veteran's asthma is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,The Veteran's sleep apnea claim has been remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, asthma, and foot conditions, rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work history throughout the appeal period.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand several cases related to the Veteran's PTSD, asthma, and other conditions. The issues include increased disability ratings for PTSD and asthma, as well as effective date determinations.
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