The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disorder was reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence. Service connection was denied as his back disorder is not shown to be causally or etiologically related to any disease, injury, or incident during service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran’s current back disorder may not be related to his military service due to lack of in-service treatment records and negative clinical evaluation at separation. Additionally, arthritis did not manifest within one year of discharge.
- Claimed conditions
- Back Disorder (including degenerative arthritis, spinal stenosis, and multilevel lumbar spine degenerative spondylosis)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 22, 2020
- Citation
- 20080460
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for spinal stenosis, peripheral neuropathy, and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbar spine degenerative arthritis, degenerative disc disease, lumbosacral strain, and spinal stenosis based on the Veteran's in-service back injury and chronicity of symptoms.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on either incapacitating episodes or unfavorable ankylosis.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of the claim for service connection for a right hip disability, to include as secondary to a service-connected right knee disability, and denied an effective date prior to June 8, 2022, for the award of service connection for spinal stenosis, right lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy, and left lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy.
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