The Board found that the Veteran's current low back disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service and is not secondary to a service-connected condition.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's post-service work-related injury caused his lumbar spine disability, which is less likely related to his military service and less likely caused or aggravated by his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine at L4-5 (low back disability)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 12, 2013
- Citation
- 1312186
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 1312186.
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 Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability did not manifest in service and is not etiologically related to his service or a service-connected condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board is remanding the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and providing an addendum opinion from a medical professional. The Veteran's claim will be readjudicated based on all evidence.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
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