The Veteran's DDD of the lumbar spine and bilateral knee disability are being considered as secondary to his service-connected right ankle instability. The examiner will determine if these conditions have worsened due to the right ankle disorder.,The Veteran's residuals from a head injury are being evaluated, but no specific service connection theory is provided.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner must assess whether the Veteran's current physical and psychiatric manifestations of his in-service head injury are at least as likely as not related to that injury.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine, Bilateral knee disability, Residuals of a head injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 26, 2014
- Citation
- 1412871
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 1412871.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
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 remanded the claims for further development due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability is dismissed. The appeal for service connection for bilateral knee disabilities is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that there is a need for additional medical examination and opinion to address the Veteran's claim of service connection for a back disability, including DDD of the lumbar spine. The current VA opinions are deemed inadequate due to their failure to consider the Veteran's lay reports of in-service injury and continuous symptomatology since service.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and bilateral hearing loss, do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.
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