The Veteran's initial claim for service connection for degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine was received on November 10, 1983. The effective date for this award is set at November 10, 1983.,The Veteran's initial claim for service connection for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine was also received on November 10, 1983. The effective date for this award is set at November 10, 1983.,The Veteran's initial rating for allergic rhinitis was granted in October 29, 2004 and increased to 10 percent from July 13, 1994 and to 30 percent from November 6, 2006.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's initial claims for service connection were received on the same date (November 10, 1983), which is considered the effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine, Degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 26, 2018
- Citation
- 1825135
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 1825135.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, finding that there is no nexus between the current disability and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
- Granted
The Veteran's back disability is rated at 40 percent prior to January 13, 2022. Effective March 18, 2020, the Veteran is granted TDIU.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities prior to October 22, 2008 are being remanded due to the need for additional retrospective medical opinions.
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