The Board has denied service connection for a chronic right shoulder disability, and the issues of service connection for degenerative arthritis of the spine with herniated disc and arachnoiditis have been remanded due to insufficient medical opinions.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations provided were inadequate in determining whether the Veteran's current back disability clearly existed prior to his entrance onto active service or was caused by injury sustained during his period of active service.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic Right Shoulder Disability, Degenerative Arthritis of the Spine with Herniated Disc, Arachnoiditis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 14, 2023
- Citation
- 23066316
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 23066316.
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 arachnoiditis and associated radiculopathy in both legs have been rated based on their severity, with the right leg receiving a higher rating due to more severe symptoms.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current back disability is not etiologically related to military service and therefore denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's current lumbar spine disabilities.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's back pain was not caused by VA care, but rather due to a myelogram performed in 1978. The claim is denied as there is no evidence of fault on VA's part.
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