The Veteran's claim for service connection for congenital fusion of C2-3 and degenerative changes at C6-7 with claimed paresthesia, left hand, to include as secondary to IVDS is remanded due to a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error. A VA examination is needed to determine if the Veteran's congenital cervical disability has been aggravated by his service-connected intervertebral disc syndrome.
The deciding factor: The claim was not properly addressed because the Veteran was not provided with a VA medical examination to assess whether his congenital cervical disability has been aggravated by his service-connected IVDS.
- Claimed conditions
- Congenital fusion of C2-3, Degenerative changes at C6-7
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 27, 2019
- Citation
- A19001013
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,669 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19001013.
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.
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- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is granted as service connected due to his fear of hostile military activity during his Vietnam service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and kidney disease are being remanded due to the need for VA examinations to determine if these conditions are related to his exposure to contaminants in the water supply at Camp Lejeune during service.
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