The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disorder, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service injury or disease and no continuity of symptomatology. The Board also noted that the Veteran's degenerative arthritis did not manifest within one year of discharge from service.
The deciding factor: There is no competent medical evidence linking the current low back disorders to service, including a lack of continuity of symptoms since service.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disorder, degenerative disc disease at L3-S1, degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 2, 2020
- Citation
- 20000108
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death while it was pending.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for a low back disorder to obtain additional medical evidence and ensure that the Veteran is afforded every possible consideration.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for a low back disorder was dismissed as the RO granted service connection in a November 2023 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a low back disorder to obtain additional evidence and an adequate medical opinion in compliance with previous remand instructions.
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