The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings for his cervical spine disability, lumbar spine DDD/DJD, and right shoulder impingement syndrome due to lack of medical evidence supporting a direct relationship between these conditions and his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no medical evidence linking the current cervical spine disability to service, despite the Veteran's assertions. The Board also noted that there was insufficient range of motion testing in the previous examinations for the lumbar spine and right shoulder.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical spine disability, Degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine, Right shoulder impingement syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 3, 2018
- Citation
- 18155023
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 18155023.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected cervical spine disability is rated at 20 percent, the maximum rating available under the General Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine. The evidence does not support a higher rating as his range of motion did not meet the criteria for an increased rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for brain cancer, low back disability, and cervical spine disability due to a pre-decisional error in failing to obtain a radiation dose estimate from the Under Secretary for Health. The Veteran's military service aboard USS ENTERPRISE is considered relevant to his exposure to ionizing radiation.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine condition had its onset in service and has continued since then, meeting the criteria for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating of his cervical spine, thoracolumbar spine, left shoulder, right shoulder, upper extremity neurological, and lower extremity neurological disabilities due to inadequate VA medical examinations in March 2019 and January-May 2016. The new examinations must consider the Veteran's reported onset dates for his symptoms.
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