The Board has denied service connection for a neck condition due to lack of evidence linking the current disability to military service. The claims for increased ratings for lumbar strain, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome are remanded as new examinations are needed.
The deciding factor: The Board found no medical opinion suggesting a link between the Veteran's in-service accident and his current neck condition, nor did it find evidence of continuity of symptomatology within one year of separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- neck condition, cervicalgia, degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 20, 2019
- Citation
- 19164536
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,329 · Granted: 31% (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 19164536.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a neck condition and a low back condition, finding that the Veteran's current diagnoses are related to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied readjudication of the previously denied claims for service connection for migraines and a neck condition because new evidence submitted after the November 2018 rating decision was not relevant to proving or disproving the Veteran's claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of evidence regarding the etiology of the Veteran's cervical spine disorder and an incomplete record of chiropractic care. The Veteran is requested to provide or authorize VA to obtain his treatment records from chiropractors, and an addendum opinion will be provided by a VA examiner.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for neck and back conditions due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
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