The Veteran's low back disability, diagnosed as degenerative joint disease and degenerative disc disease, was not incurred or aggravated by his military service. The Board found no link between the current condition and any incident of service.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing a chronic low back disability during service, and the Veteran did not provide a history of such injuries until after separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- low_back_disease, degenerative_joint_disease, degenerative_disc_disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 4, 2015
- Citation
- 1523865
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1523865.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability, including degenerative disc disease and low back strain, had its onset during his active duty service or within one year thereafter. The decision grants service connection for this condition.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disabilities, including low back syndrome and degenerative disc disease, are related to service. The criteria for service connection have been met.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found insufficient evidence to establish service connection for the Veteran's low back condition, as her in-service treatment records do not support a finding of an in-service injury or incident. The respiratory condition issue is marked as 'unknown' due to lack of relevant information.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability did not have its clinical onset in service and is not otherwise related to active duty. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection.
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