The Board denied service connection for a low back disorder and bilateral knee disorders, as well as an acquired psychiatric disorder and GERD. The Veteran's claims were not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the current degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine was not related to service because it did not manifest until 12 years after separation from service, and there was no chronic in-service back symptomatology.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral knee disorder, low back disorder, acquired psychiatric disorder, GERD
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 2, 2014
- Citation
- 1419680
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 1419680.
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.
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- Denied
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection on the merits are being remanded due to new evidence and development needs. The maximum disability rating for tinnitus has already been assigned.
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