The Veteran's arthritis of the cervical spine and residuals of a head injury including concussion and headache were not incurred or aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: Service records are negative for any mention of an injury to the neck, and there were no complications or sequelae regarding the accident in service. The examiner stated it was less likely that the Veteran's mild degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine was a residual of his head injury during active service.
- Claimed conditions
- Arthritis of the cervical spine, Residuals of head injury including concussion and headache
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 18, 2009
- Citation
- 0930955
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 0930955.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) for the period on appeal, as the Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to maintain gainful employment.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for thoracolumbar and cervical spine disabilities, finding that there is no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected migraine headaches have been rated at the maximum schedular disability rating of 50 percent since July 12, 2010. Additionally, from July 12, 2010, a TDIU has also been granted due to the combined effect of multiple service-connected disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected posttraumatic headaches and arthritis of the cervical spine, thoracolumbar spine, and left ankle rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation since his retirement in October 2009.
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