The Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine with bilateral radiculopathy is being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding aggravation during service and verification of dates of service.
The deciding factor: The Board has determined that there are insufficient records available to verify the Veteran's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty training (IDT), which is necessary to determine whether his lumbar spine disorder was aggravated by these periods of service. Additionally, a medical opinion is needed regarding whether the Veteran's pre-existing lumbar spine disorder was aggravated during his ACDUTRA in May/June 1989 and/or his second period of service from January 1991 to March 1991.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, bilateral radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 12, 2014
- Citation
- 1410211
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 1410211.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome have been granted service connection as secondary to his service-connected disabilities. The lumbar spine disability has also been granted but the effective date is not specified.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for TDIU prior to October 18, 2018 due to a lack of evidence showing that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating for various conditions, including allergic rhinitis, sleep apnea, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, lower extremity radiculopathies, and left lower extremity radiculopathy with foot drop. The issues include determining if these conditions are related to service or other factors.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have prevented him from securing and maintaining substantially gainful employment since June 30, 2018. The Board has granted a TDIU effective July 1, 2018.
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