The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar and cervical DDD due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether these conditions are related to his active duty service.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not provide clear and unmistakable evidence that the lumbar and cervical DDD pre-existed service or were aggravated by service, nor did they address the Veteran's theory of direct service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar degenerative disc disease (DDD), cervical degenerative disc disease (cervical DDD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 6, 2021
- Citation
- 21072894
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 21072894.
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 service connection for tinnitus has been denied as there is no evidence of a nexus between the condition and his military service.,Service connection for a rating in excess of 10 percent for lumbar DDD has also been denied due to lack of evidence supporting an increase in disability level.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeals for the issues of effective dates and ratings related to lumbar spine strain, Dupuytren's contracture in the left hand with ankylosis, and Dupuytren's contracture in the right hand with osteoarthritis. The Board dismissed these appeals.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected back disability was denied an increased rating, with a final rating of 40% since May 2, 2018.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection for benign prostate hypertrophy is granted. However, the Veteran's increased rating claim for lumbar degenerative disc disease is denied.
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