The Board found that new and material evidence had been received to reopen the claim of service connection for a low back disorder, which was determined to be related to active service. The appellant's current low back disorder is considered to have resulted from his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner acknowledged the appellant's lay assertions of chronic low back pain since service and noted that the STRs documented multiple episodes of lower back strain during service. However, due to incomplete documentation at the time, it was as likely as not that the current lumbar DDD resulted from natural aging rather than a 1967 injury.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disorder, degenerative joint disease (DJD), degenerative disc disease (DDD), herniated nucleus pulposus, sciatica, nerve root compression, pain radiation and/or radiculopathy to the lower extremities
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 23, 2009
- Citation
- 0940255
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 0940255.
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
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