The Board found that the veteran's preexisting back disorder did not increase in severity during service, and there was no evidence of a causal relationship between his current back disabilities and service. The Board also denied service connection for a right foot disability as there was no evidence linking it to military service.
The deciding factor: The lack of medical evidence showing an increase in the veteran's preexisting back disorder or a link between his current back conditions and service, combined with the absence of documented treatment for over 30 years after discharge, led to the denial of the claim.
- Claimed conditions
- back disorder, right foot disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 29, 2009
- Citation
- 0903093
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,011 · Granted: 24% (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 0903093.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and providing proper notice regarding secondary service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a back disorder, high blood pressure, and type II diabetes mellitus due to errors in development of the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for headaches, right hip disorder, left hip disorder, back disorder, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a failure to provide notice regarding the Veteran's right to a hearing.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that side effects from prescribed medications contributed substantially and materially to his accidental motorcycle collision resulting in fatal injuries.
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