The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a back injury, finding that the preponderance of the evidence was against establishing a link between the disability and active service.
The deciding factor: The examiner opined that there was no evidence to support the Veteran's reported history of a hairline fracture related to an in-service incident, and current back disabilities were less likely than not related to incidents during service but rather to post-service injuries, use, weight gain, and surgery causing traumatic arthritis.
- Claimed conditions
- Residuals of a back injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2021
- Citation
- 21061547
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the issues of service connection for residuals of a pelvic injury, back injury, left hip injury, and head injury, as well as the issue regarding whether the injuries were due to willful misconduct.
- Partly granted
The Board reopened the claim for service connection for residuals of a back injury due to new and material evidence but denied it on the merits. The claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and traumatic brain injury were all denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal must be remanded to the RO for further development and consideration of the veteran's claims.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's request to reopen claims for service connection for residuals of a back injury, bilateral hearing loss disability, a scar on the left side of the neck, a scar on the left eye, scars on the feet and a rash on the legs as new and material evidence was not submitted.
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