The Veteran's claims for service connection for right wrist, cervical spine, left hip, and lumbar spine disabilities are denied. The issues of service connection for headaches (secondary to a cervical spine disability) and temporomandibular joint disorder remain pending.
The deciding factor: Service treatment records do not show chronic or disabling back conditions during service, and the current diagnoses predate service by many years.
- Claimed conditions
- Tendonitis of the right wrist, Right hip disability, Left hip disability, Cervical spine disability, Headaches, to include as secondary to a cervical spine disability, Lumbar spine disability, Eye disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 3, 2009
- Citation
- 0945958
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 0945958.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected cervical spine disability is rated at 20 percent, the maximum rating available under the General Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine. The evidence does not support a higher rating as his range of motion did not meet the criteria for an increased rating.
- Dismissed
Your appeal of the March 28, 2025 rating decision that deferred adjudication of your right hip disability claim has been dismissed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for brain cancer, low back disability, and cervical spine disability due to a pre-decisional error in failing to obtain a radiation dose estimate from the Under Secretary for Health. The Veteran's military service aboard USS ENTERPRISE is considered relevant to his exposure to ionizing radiation.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine condition had its onset in service and has continued since then, meeting the criteria for service connection.
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