The Board granted service connection for a low back disability and a cervical spine disability, finding that the evidence was in equipoise regarding their incurrence during active duty.
The deciding factor: The private examiner found each of the disabilities to be as likely as not due to the Veteran's active-duty service based on his reported symptoms and the constancy of those reports throughout the appeals period.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the lumbar spine, arthritis of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- July 8, 2025
- Citation
- A25058340
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted an evaluation of 10 percent, but no higher, prior to June 13, 2020, and a 30 percent rating thereafter for the Veteran's arthritis of the cervical spine.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a neck disorder, diagnosed as arthritis of the cervical spine, and a left leg disorder, diagnosed as arthritis of the left ankle.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeals for service connection of various conditions as they were premature, and denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II and a migraine headache disability.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including arthritis of the entire skeletal system (other than cervical spine, right shoulder, bilateral hands, and left foot), a left knee condition (other than arthritis), and other specific joints. The claims were not granted.
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