The Board found that the Veteran's cervical spine disability was not incurred in service and did not demonstrate onset during the first year after service. The Board also determined that it is less likely than not that his cervical spine disability is caused or aggravated by his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
The deciding factor: There is no plausible biological mechanism by which the Veteran's mild degenerative disc and joint disease of the lumbar spine would cause or contribute to his cervical stenosis and cervical degenerative disc disease (DDD) and degenerative joint disease (DJD).
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical Spine Disability, Osteoarthritis of Lumbar Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 16, 2018
- Citation
- 1816046
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 1816046.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's cervical spine disability, right knee strain (painful motion), and right knee instability are now rated at 30 percent effective August 16, 2017.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for TMD, cervical spine disability, and FSAD have been denied.,An earlier effective date prior to August 2, 2022, for the award of service connection for these conditions has also been denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service connection claims for erectile dysfunction and voiding dysfunction have been denied due to the lack of evidence linking these conditions to his in-service exposure.,The remaining service connection claims (for bilateral feet, ankles, hip, wrist, cervical spine, upper extremity radiculopathy, psychiatric disorder, GERD, sleep apnea, and hypertension) are remanded for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for cervical spine disability, right upper extremity radiculopathy, and left upper extremity radiculopathy due to inadequate examinations. The Veteran is required to undergo new VA examinations to assess her current and retrospective severity of these disabilities.
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