The Board found that the preponderance of the evidence is against a causal or aggravation link between the appellant's current cervical, lumbar spine disabilities and his service-connected thoracic vertebrae compression fractures. The same was also found for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome.
The deciding factor: The May 2006 consult examinations concluded that the appellant's cervical and lumbar degenerative disc disease were not related to his original October 1973 injury, and pain alone does not constitute a disability for which service connection may be granted.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical and lumbar disabilities, Bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 13, 2009
- Citation
- 0905394
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,677 · Granted: 26% (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 0905394.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for a left and right knee disability, fatty liver, eustachian tube dysfunction, and bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome due to inadequate VA examinations and medical opinions.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board granted secondary service connection for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and denied increased ratings for a cervical spine disability, left upper extremity radiculopathy, and posttraumatic stress disorder with depression/mood disorder.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The veteran withdrew his appeal for all claims, including those related to various disabilities and service connection.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms did not cause the level of impairment required for a higher rating.
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