The Veteran's bilateral leg disorder is not service-connected as secondary to his service-connected hypertension. The February 1985 rating decision for lumbar and cervical spine arthritis was upheld, with the VA finding that a single rating under Diagnostic Code 5003 was appropriate given x-ray evidence of involvement in two minor joint groups (lumbar and cervical spines). DIC benefits were denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's bilateral leg disorder is not shown to be related to his service-connected hypertension, as multiple VA examinations found no link between the medication used for hypertension and the dermatitis. The Board also determined that there was no CUE in the February 1985 rating decision regarding spinal arthritis.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral leg disorder, hypertension, bilateral stasis dermatitis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19149649
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,050 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Outcome labels are AI-extracted from each decision; spot checks have found mislabels, so treat percentages as approximate.
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19149649.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: 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.
- Whole decision: 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.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
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.
- Whole decision: 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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