The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for service connection for a lower back disability, including disability of the thoracolumbar spine. The case is being sent back for further examination and consideration.
The deciding factor: The October 2015 VA examiner’s report was inadequate due to its selective review of past records and failure to address or evaluate the Veteran's lower thoracic spine discogenic disease, necessitating a new examination informed by adequate studies including of the lower thoracic spine.
- Claimed conditions
- lower back disability, disability of the thoracolumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 19, 2018
- Citation
- 18111540
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 18111540.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to reconsider the Veteran's claims for service connection for left hip, left knee, right hip, and lower back disabilities. The claim for left hip disability is remanded due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for left knee and lower back disabilities due to incomplete information about the Veteran's duty status during his periods of active service in the National Guard and Reserves.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's lower back disability, finding that it is etiologically related to his in-service duties of lifting heavy equipment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for lower back disability, migraine headaches, fibromyalgia, CFS, and PTSD due to lack of a current diagnosis. The appeal is now remanded for further development.
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