The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the service connection for a low back disability. The examiner is requested to provide an addendum opinion on whether each diagnosed back disability is a congenital/developmental defect or disease, and if so, whether there was a superimposed injury or disease in service that resulted in additional back disability.
The deciding factor: The Board found the 2017 VA examination report inadequate for adjudication purposes due to its failure to discuss the Veteran's continuous low back pain since the in-service car accident and his contention of congenital/developmental defects.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease, spondylolisthesis, degenerative arthritis, intervertebral disc syndrome with radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 15, 2018
- Citation
- 18111590
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 18111590.
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.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's rating for his right elbow condition from 10 percent to 20 percent effective May 5, 2025, finding that the evidence was in equipoise regarding whether there had been improvement in the Veteran's ability to function under ordinary conditions of life and work.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates of January 13, 2020 for the service connection of low back disability and related radiculopathy issues. The Veteran's claims were reopened due to new evidence submitted in January 2020.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back condition, including degenerative disc disease and scoliosis, due to lack of current disability evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examinations related to the Veteran's lower back condition and surgical scars are inadequate, necessitating a remand for further evaluation.
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