The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim of service connection for a low back disability and is now considering whether new evidence supports this reopening. The Veteran reported chronic low back pain since an MVA during his military service, but VA records do not support these claims. The current diagnosis is attributed to a known clinical condition (disc protrusion).
The deciding factor: The Veteran's post-service reports of constant low back pain are not credible due to lack of contemporaneous documentation and contradictions with prior statements.
- Claimed conditions
- Low Back Disability
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2012
- Citation
- 1202424
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 1202424.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his low back, left knee, and right knee disabilities due to inadequate VA examinations. The AOJ is instructed to obtain private treatment records from Mays & Schnapp Pain Management and schedule the Veteran for additional medical examinations.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's low back disability, including diagnosed degenerative arthritis with DDD other than intervertebral disc syndrome and spinal stenosis status post L3, L4, and L5 laminectomy. The decision is based on the Veteran's in-service injury and his ongoing symptoms since then.
- Granted
The Veteran's right shoulder disability, low back condition, bilateral knee disabilities, and left shoulder strain have been granted service connection. The Veteran's low back condition has been increased to a 40 percent evaluation, while the bilateral knee conditions remain at their current 10 percent evaluations.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for the claimed conditions as there is no persuasive evidence of current diagnoses or in-service incurrence or aggravation.
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