The Board has denied service connection for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine and thoracolumbar spine as there is no evidence that these conditions are related to military service.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions found no nexus between the Veteran's current disabilities and his active duty service, citing lack of continuity of care or chronicity following discharge from service and conflicting statements regarding onset of symptoms.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, Degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 3, 2024
- Citation
- 24005896
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 24005896.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, finding that there is no nexus between the current disability and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
- Granted
The Veteran's back disability is rated at 40 percent prior to January 13, 2022. Effective March 18, 2020, the Veteran is granted TDIU.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities prior to October 22, 2008 are being remanded due to the need for additional retrospective medical opinions.
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