The Board has reopened a claim for service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine and remanded the claims for right and left leg disabilities as secondary to this condition.
The deciding factor: New evidence was submitted that relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim, reopening the case. The issues are now remanded due to a need for a VA examination to determine the etiology of the Veteran's current disability and its relationship to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, Right leg disability, Left leg disability
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 19, 2023
- Citation
- 23022862
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 23022862.
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 Veteran's claim for increased ratings for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine was granted with effective dates of May 13, 2019.
- Granted
The Veteran's right foot condition, including pain and functional limitation, is related to service. The Veteran's right leg disability did not have an onset in service or manifest within a year of service, nor is it otherwise related to service or a service-connected disability. The Veteran's left leg disability also did not have an onset in service or manifest within a year of service, nor is it otherwise related to service or a service-connected disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine was diagnosed during service and has continued since then. The Board granted service connection for this condition based on continuity of symptomatology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to inadequate examinations and the need for a retrospective opinion regarding the severity of his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
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