The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back disorder and bilateral hip disorder, finding that there was no evidence of an etiological relationship between these conditions and either service or his service-connected knee disorders.
The deciding factor: The VHA medical opinion concluded that the Veteran's back and bilateral hip disabilities were less likely than not related to his service-connected knee disabilities, citing the absence of treatment for these conditions between 1974 and 1995 and noting that the changes in the hips were mild and symmetrical.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disorder, Bilateral hip disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 27, 2009
- Citation
- 0907453
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.
- Partly granted
The appeal was denied for service connection of a cervical spine disorder, and several claims were remanded for further development.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeal for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, PTSD, a right shoulder disorder, and a back disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disorders, including an acquired psychiatric disorder, neck, back, headache, right ankle, right knee, right shoulder, and right elbow disorders, penile disorder (erectile dysfunction), and sleep apnea, to correct a pre-decisional error by verifying the Veteran's duty status in January 2017 and obtaining additional medical opinions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board denied a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss and remanded the claims for service connection, increased ratings for acne and knee disorders, and pes planus.
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