The Veteran's back and bilateral leg disabilities are found to be related to service, with the back disability being granted as direct service connection and the bilateral leg disability being granted as secondary service connection.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the Veteran's current back and bilateral leg disabilities are related to his in-service exposure to gravitational forces as a fighter pilot, leading to both conditions. The back disability was found to be directly related to service due to its onset during active duty, while the bilateral leg disability was granted secondary service connection based on aggravation by the back disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disability, Bilateral leg disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 10, 2017
- Citation
- 1715809
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 1715809.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
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 of a back disability, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between his current condition and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for a back disability due to incomplete service records and failure to consider all available evidence, including in-service treatment records from F.E. Warren Air Force Base.
- Granted
The Veteran's rating for residuals status post lumbar fusion was reduced from 40 percent to 20 percent effective October 25, 2023. The reduction was granted as there was no evidence of actual improvement in the Veteran's condition prior to this date.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability is being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors and the need for a VA examination.
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