The Board has determined that additional development is needed to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims for service connection for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities. This includes obtaining VA treatment records, arranging for an addendum opinion from a VA examiner regarding the etiology of these conditions, and considering all evidence in the decision.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the existing examinations were inadequate as they did not consider the Veteran's lay statements about injuries sustained during service or the combined effects of multiple parachute jumps on his spine. Therefore, additional development is needed to obtain a proper opinion regarding the etiology of these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical spine (neck) disability, Lumbar spine disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 13, 2016
- Citation
- 1623460
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 1623460.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine disability with left upper extremity radiculopathy, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service injury or chronic condition. The Board concluded that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for direct service connection.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for headaches and lumbar spine disability, as well as left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, were denied. The effective dates for these conditions are also denied.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) was denied because the disability is not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology is not established; and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability was denied because the disability was not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology is not established; and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) was denied because there is no evidence of loss of consciousness or memory impairment following the motor vehicle accident during service, and post-service VA treatment records do not show a diagnosis of TBI.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) with agoraphobia with panic attacks as directly related to military service.
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