The Board found clear and unmistakable evidence that the Veteran's ankylosing spondylitis or similar arthritic disorder preexisted service. The condition was not aggravated during service, and thus service connection is denied.
The deciding factor: There is clear and unmistakable evidence of a preexisting condition (ankylosing spondylitis) prior to service, and the Veteran failed to provide sufficient evidence to rebut this presumption by showing that his condition was aggravated beyond its natural progression during service.
- Claimed conditions
- ankylosing spondylitis of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 23, 2010
- Citation
- 1036025
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 1036025.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's ankylosing spondylitis of the lumbar spine is related to service and grants service connection for this condition.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for ankylosing spondylitis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine, finding that it is at least as likely as not related to environmental factors during active military service. Service connection was also granted for a bilateral hip condition, but this issue is remanded due to insufficient medical opinion regarding its relationship to service-connected conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran is seeking to have the effective dates for his service-connected conditions and TDIU revised due to a claimed error in the original rating decisions. The Board has determined that these claims should be remanded for further action.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for ankylosing spondylitis of the cervical spine, lumbar spine, and bilateral hip condition due to in-service infections or exposure to herbicide agents. The AOJ must obtain a new medical opinion addressing the etiology of these conditions.
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