The Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims ruled that the criteria for entitlement to service connection for a back disability are met and that service connection is warranted.
The deciding factor: The clinical evidence established current diagnoses of neuropathy, arthritis, sciatic and femoral nerve root peripheral neuropathy, degenerative disc disease, degenerative joint disease (spondylosis), and a scar of the posterior left back, all of which were found to have been incurred in active service.
- Claimed conditions
- Neuropathy of the cervical spine, Arthritis of the cervical spine, Sciatic and femoral nerve root peripheral neuropathy of the lumbar spine, Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, Degenerative joint disease (spondylosis) of the lumbosacral spine, A scar of the posterior left back
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 23, 2009
- Citation
- 0910744
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment, thus granting a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death while it was pending.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, finding a positive nexus to the Veteran's active duty service.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal of proposed rating reductions for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy, left lower extremity, due to procedural defects in the Veteran's notice of disagreement. The issue regarding a compensable rating for migraine headaches was remanded.
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