The Board has granted the Veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection for a back disorder. However, it denied the claim as there is no evidence that the current disability is related to service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the current back condition was less likely than not caused by the in-service injury and was due to progressive lumbar degenerative disease unrelated to the service treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- multilevel degenerative disc disease, herniated nucleus pulposus status post multilevel laminectomy and fusion, right radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19115491
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,200 · Granted: 43% (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 19115491.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's service connection claim for a lumbar spine disability should be remanded due to a duty to assist error.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's back disability, diagnosed as multilevel degenerative disc disease and facet arthropathy, finding that it is related to his in-service injury.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral knee degenerative joint disease and right shoulder DJD, but denied service connection for a compensable rating for scar, right bunionectomy, bilateral hearing loss (BHL), and right radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) and a rating in excess of 70 percent for major depressive disorder (MDD).
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