The Board has dismissed the appeal for low back pain. The veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, cervical degenerative joint disease with C-8 radiculopathy, dysthymia and major depression (claimed as secondary to cervical degenerative joint disease), and a compression fracture of the thoracic spine are denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not establish that any of these conditions were incurred or aggravated by service. The veteran's hearing loss was not shown during service or within one year thereafter, and there is no medical opinion linking it to service. For cervical degenerative joint disease with C-8 radiculopathy, dysthymia and major depression (claimed as secondary to cervical degenerative joint disease), and a compression fracture of the thoracic spine, the evidence does not establish that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- low back pain, bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, cervical degenerative joint disease with C-8 radiculopathy, dysthymia and major depression, compression fracture of the thoracic spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 30, 2008
- Citation
- 0844888
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 0844888.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The claim for service connection of a low back disability was reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence. The claim is denied as there is no evidence that the current condition is related to service.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial claim for service-connected bilateral sensorineural hearing loss was denied, and the rating assigned prior to September 12, 2024, is noncompensable.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for heart disease, hypertension, kidney disease, and low back pain due to potential errors in duty to assist. The AOJ is required to verify the Veteran's alleged exposure to herbicide agents and obtain private treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, tinnitus, thoracolumbar levoscoliosis with advanced multilevel DDD and facet arthropathy (low back disability), and cervical spine disability to include cervicalgia (neck disability) due to a lack of VA examination records and an incomplete review of service treatment records.
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