The Board found that the Veteran's low back and cervical spine disabilities are not related to his service, as there is no evidence of chronic conditions in service or for many years thereafter. The VA examinations did not support a finding of direct service connection.
The deciding factor: VA examiners determined that any current low back and cervical spine disabilities were not caused by the Veteran's service, but rather due to post-service injuries such as automobile accidents and workplace incidents.
- Claimed conditions
- Low Back Disability, Cervical Spine Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 20, 2015
- Citation
- 1544721
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 1544721.
What this means for you
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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 decided to remand the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his low back, left knee, and right knee disabilities due to inadequate VA examinations. The AOJ is instructed to obtain private treatment records from Mays & Schnapp Pain Management and schedule the Veteran for additional medical examinations.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's low back disability, including diagnosed degenerative arthritis with DDD other than intervertebral disc syndrome and spinal stenosis status post L3, L4, and L5 laminectomy. The decision is based on the Veteran's in-service injury and his ongoing symptoms since then.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine disability, right knee strain (painful motion), and right knee instability are now rated at 30 percent effective August 16, 2017.
- Granted
The Veteran's right shoulder disability, low back condition, bilateral knee disabilities, and left shoulder strain have been granted service connection. The Veteran's low back condition has been increased to a 40 percent evaluation, while the bilateral knee conditions remain at their current 10 percent evaluations.
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