The Board has reopened the claims of service connection for arthritis of the neck, bilateral hands, and lumbar spine due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran. The claims are now remanded for further evaluation.
The deciding factor: New evidence received since the last final denial relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim - a causal nexus between the claimed disabilities and service-connected knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the neck, arthritis of bilateral hands, degenerative arthritis lumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 20, 2021
- Citation
- 21023385
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 21023385.
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 Veteran's claim for an evaluation in excess of 40 percent for his lumbar spine disability has been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating, as there was no unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes of IVDS.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, right knee strain, and left knee degenerative arthritis due to inadequate VA medical opinions. The AOJ is instructed to obtain an adequate medical opinion addressing the etiology of these conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine with strain is granted as it meets the criteria for direct service connection due to continuity of symptomatology since service.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the neck, right knee condition (claimed as arthritis), left knee condition (claimed as arthritis), left hip condition, right hip condition, and right hand condition. The appeals are dismissed.
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