The Board has determined that the Veteran's cervical spine disability did not manifest during service and is not shown to be causally or etiologically related to an in-service event, injury or disease. The Board also found insufficient evidence to determine if the Veteran's brain aneurysm was caused by his service-connected PTSD.
The deciding factor: The November 2011 VA examiner did not provide sufficient explanation for determining that the Veteran’s brain aneurysm is a congenital condition and did not consider the August 2005 to October 2005 Hurricane Katrina search and rescue mission as it relates to the Veteran's brain aneurysm.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical spine disability, Brain aneurysm
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 22, 2019
- Citation
- 19164845
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 19164845.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for low back disability, cervical spine disability, and right leg nerve disability as the evidence did not support a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active service.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection for right ear hearing loss and a compensable evaluation for left ear hearing loss were dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeals at a December 2024 Board hearing. The remaining claims are being remanded for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a separate 50 percent initial rating for insomnia as secondary to tinnitus, and denied an increased rating for tinnitus. The Board also granted service connection for headache disability, low back disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, cervical spine disability, and right upper extremity radiculopathy.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, a cervical spine disability, and right ear hearing loss but denied service connection for sinusitis. The left ear hearing loss claim was remanded.
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