The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for a back condition, as new and material evidence has been received. However, the Board found that there is no relationship between the veteran's current low back disorder and his period of active military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that the veteran's current lumbosacral spine degenerative disc disease had absolutely no relationship to the claimant's military service based on the history provided, which included working as a crane operator and janitor after service.
- Claimed conditions
- idiopathic scoliosis of the lower thoracic spine, spondylolisthesis, degenerative disc disease, facet degeneration of the low back with radicular features of the left lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2007
- Citation
- 0706985
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 0706985.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition, including degenerative disc disease and scoliosis, due to lack of current disability evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examinations related to the Veteran's lower back condition and surgical scars are inadequate, necessitating a remand for further evaluation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection of a low back disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, finding inadequate medical opinions due to failure to consider all relevant evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to predecisional duty-to-assist errors, including inadequate medical opinions and missed VA examinations. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition is being returned to the RO for further action.
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