The Veteran's lumbar condition is being remanded for further development due to a duty-to-assist error, including obtaining an addendum VA opinion and possibly a new examination.
The deciding factor: An inadequate VA examination was conducted, which did not address the aggravation prong of secondary service connection. A new examination or addendum opinion is needed to determine if the Veteran's lumbar condition is due to his military service or caused by his service-connected right hip/thigh condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease, Lumbar Spine, Radiculopathy (lower right)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 8, 2023
- Citation
- A23035139
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 A23035139.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his degenerative joint disease, lumbar spine is remanded due to the inadequacy of the August 2020 VA examination report and the need for current range of motion testing that disregards the ameliorative effects of his medications.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection related to degenerative joint disease, lumbar spine, lumbar canal stenosis; right knee condition; left knee condition; right shoulder condition; and neck pain are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU due to inadequate medical opinions regarding his back disability, as well as a need for additional information on his unemployability claim.
- Dismissed
The appeal for an increased rating for degenerative joint disease, lumbar spine, is dismissed.
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