The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, as secondary to diabetes mellitus type II is reopened. The Board finds new and material evidence has been received.,Service connection for a back disability, variously claimed as spondylosis multilevel of the lumbar spine and as a lower back injury, is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension was previously denied in 2007 due to lack of evidence showing a nexus between service and current disability. New evidence received since then includes treatment records and VA hearing testimony, which establishes the presence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus type II. However, there is no evidence of a chronic back condition during or within one year after service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability was denied in 2013 due to lack of evidence showing a nexus between service and current disability. The VA examiner found that the Veteran's current findings are those of degenerative disc disease, which is usually the result of chronic wear and tear over many years rather than a minor muscle strain.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension, back disability (spondylosis multilevel of the lumbar spine and as a lower back injury), retinopathy, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 9, 2019
- Citation
- 19135951
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 317 · Granted: 19% (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 19135951.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
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The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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