The Board remands the claim for service connection of a chronic disability of the thoracolumbar spine to correct duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: An addendum examination and opinion are needed due to an inadequate prior VA medical opinion, which relied on inaccurate factual premises and failed to provide a medically supported rationale with supporting data and reasoned medical explanations.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic disability of the thoracolumbar spine, claimed as residuals of an injury to include lumbosacral strain, degenerative arthritis, intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS), spondylolisthesis, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 23, 2025
- Citation
- A25054084
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal seeking service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, degenerative arthritis, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension was dismissed due to non-compliance with claims processing rules.
- Granted
The Board granted a 40 percent disability rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability since September 26, 2024.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including obtaining outstanding Social Security Administration records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis of the spine and intervertebral disc syndrome.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.