The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability. The evidence is in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, resulting from an injury during service, was incurred or aggravated by active service. Additionally, the evidence is in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's radiculopathy of the right lower extremity is proximately due to or the result of his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence supports a finding that the Veteran's current lumbar spine disability and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity are at least as likely as not related to his in-service injuries, with Dr. D.B.M.'s independent medical evaluation report providing strong support for this conclusion.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine disability, rheumatoid arthritis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2018
- Citation
- 1803991
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 1803991.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's rheumatoid arthritis disability rating is being remanded for additional development due to significant weight loss and anemia.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for miscarriage, cervical spine disability, lumbar spine disability, and right elbow disability due to insufficient examination opinions and incomplete service history verification.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee disability, right knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as these issues have been addressed in a separate docket.
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