The Board determined that the Veteran does not have current residuals of a traumatic brain injury, and therefore cannot establish service connection for this condition. The cervical spine disorder, thoracic spine disorder, and left upper extremity disorder are also not related to active duty service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner could not determine if the Veteran's current spinal and neurological disorders were related to his active duty service without resorting to speculation.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of traumatic brain injury (TBI), disorder to the cervical spine, disorder to the thoracic spine, disorder to the left upper extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 12, 2014
- Citation
- 1435889
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 1435889.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal regarding service connection for residuals of TBI has been withdrawn. The cases of service connection for left shoulder and right knee disabilities are being remanded due to a duty to assist error.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for anxiety, depression, teeth grinding, residuals of TBI, sleep disability, breathing disability, and IBS as there was no evidence showing these conditions were incurred or aggravated by military service.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all service connection claims and rating determinations due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for residuals of traumatic brain injury (TBI) is granted as the TBI had its onset during active duty and has been recurrent since then.
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