The Board found that the Veteran's current back and leg numbness and additional circulatory disorders are not related to his active service, as there is no evidence of such conditions during or within one year after service. The Board concluded that these disabilities were not incurred in service.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence of a nexus between the Veteran's current spine and extremity disabilities and his active service, including heat exhaustion from service treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, Patellofemoral syndrome of the knees, Neuritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 12, 2013
- Citation
- 1319155
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 1319155.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine was granted with effective dates of May 13, 2019.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine was diagnosed during service and has continued since then. The Board granted service connection for this condition based on continuity of symptomatology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for a VA medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's service-connected bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy resulted in neuritis and/or neuralgia, and whether separate ratings may be appropriate.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to inadequate examinations and the need for a retrospective opinion regarding the severity of his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
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