The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient examinations and needs to provide new VA examinations for the Veteran's cervical spine (neck) and lumbar spine (back) conditions. The claims will be reconsidered based on the new evidence.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the previous examinations were insufficient as they did not address the Veteran's complaints of pain or history of atrophy, which are relevant to his service connection claim for a disability of the spine.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the spine, Spinal stenosis of the cervical spine (neck), Degenerative arthritis, Baastrup's disease, Thoracic lumbar disc protrusion with right lumbar radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 28, 2023
- Citation
- 23019121
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 23019121.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for degenerative arthritis of the spine, right knee degenerative arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, right ankle degenerative arthritis, and left ankle degenerative arthritis.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability is being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors and the need for a VA examination.
- Granted
The Veteran's low back disability is rated at 50 percent effective February 13, 2021. His left lower extremity sciatic nerve radiculopathy is rated at 80 percent from April 21, 2013 to February 12, 2021. The Veteran's TDIU claim has an earlier effective date of April 21, 2013.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for an initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for the lumbar spine disability prior to October 11, 2022 and since December 1, 2022. The Veteran's claim is currently rated at 10 percent under Diagnostic Code 5242.
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