The Board finds that the Veteran's cervical spine fusion is a congenital defect and service connection for such condition is not warranted.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence indicates that the Veteran's cervical spine fusion is a congenital defect, which precludes service connection as a matter of law.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical Spine Fusion
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2016
- Citation
- 1611357
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 1611357.
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 Board has decided to remand the case due to a failure to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the differences between the previous VA examinations and the private DBQ submitted by the Veteran. The Veteran should be scheduled for an examination to determine the severity of his service-connected cervical spine fusion disability since January 28, 2022.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine fusion is granted with a 30 percent evaluation prior to June 3, 2022. The increased evaluations for the right upper extremity radiculopathy and SMC based on aid and attendance or housebound status are denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various shoulder and foot conditions, as well as cervical spine fusion. The Veteran's right and left shoulder arthritis disabilities were not shown to meet the criteria for higher ratings.
- Denied
The Veteran does not have a qualifying additional disability (characterized as radicular symptoms in his arms) resulting from the March 1995 VA cervical fusion procedure at C4 to C7. The Board finds that the Veteran's condition was not caused by or aggravated by the VA treatment.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.