The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hip disability is not causally related to or permanently worsened by his service-connected lumbar spine disability, and thus denied the claim for secondary service connection.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support a finding of direct service connection due to the congenital nature of the hip defect, and there is no medical opinion linking the current bilateral hip disability to service or to the service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hip disability, acetabular impingement syndrome of the hips, degenerative joint disease
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 17, 2012
- Citation
- 1243177
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1243177.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim for an evaluation in excess of 40 percent for his lumbar spine disability has been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating, as there was no unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes of IVDS.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to inadequate VA examination opinions and a failure to provide a VA examination for sleep apnea.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied an increased rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, finding that there was no evidence of unfavorable ankylosis and thus not warranting a higher rating.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for an extension of a temporary total evaluation based on the need for convalescence due to his service-connected left great toe hallux valgus and degenerative joint disease has been dismissed because this issue was already decided by the Board in January 2026.
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