The Veteran's spinal injury and nerve damage are not deemed to be caused by VA medical treatment, thus the claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 is denied.
The deciding factor: The August 2019 VA opinion found no additional disability as a result of the June 2009 EMG or July 2009 ESI procedures performed by VA, and there was no evidence to support the December 2017 examiner's opinion that any resultant nerve damage was caused by these procedures.
- Claimed conditions
- Spinal injury, Nerve damage
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2020
- Citation
- 20070532
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 837 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20070532.
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 nonservice-connected pension and special monthly pension due to duty-to-assist errors, including obtaining SSA records and scheduling a VA examination.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for eligibility to enroll in the VA healthcare system has been dismissed as he is now receiving VA healthcare benefits.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's nerve damage and painful scar are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the cause of these conditions, specifically whether they resulted from improper care during his carpal tunnel release surgery.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for PTSD, a psychiatric disability other than PTSD, nerve damage, and sleep disturbance. The Board also denied an increased rating for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
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