The Veteran's claim for service connection for cervical and thoracic nerve damage was granted based on credible lay statements and medical evidence linking the current condition to an in-service injury.
The deciding factor: The Board found the Veteran's account of his in-service injury to be credible, and a VA examination report supported this by diagnosing chronic mild fascial strain and degenerative spondylosis of the cervical and thoracic spine, as well as a left upper extremity brachial plexus traction injury.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical and thoracic nerve damage
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 27, 2009
- Citation
- 0911612
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,613 · Granted: 30% (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 0911612.
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.
- Denied
The Board found no evidence of cervical or thoracic nerve damage during service and concluded that the veteran's current diagnoses are not related to an in-service injury, including any hyperextension injury to the cervical spine. Therefore, service connection for a cervical and thoracic disorder, to include nerve damage, is denied.
- Denied
The veteran's stomach tumors with gastrectomy are not related to active service, presumptively or otherwise. The claim for service connection is denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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