The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a lower back disability as secondary to his right knee degenerative arthritis and right ankle sprain, finding that there was no medical relationship between these conditions.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no medical evidence linking the Veteran's lower back disability to his service-connected right knee degenerative arthritis or right ankle sprain.
- Claimed conditions
- thoracolumbar degenerative arthritis, lumbar degenerative disk disease (DDD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 17, 2026
- Citation
- A26013902
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 A26013902.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's need for supervision, protection, or instruction on a continuous basis due to his service-connected disabilities has been determined, granting him an increased Level 2 stipend under the PCAFC program.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for thoracolumbar degenerative arthritis and intervertebral disc syndrome with spinal stenosis, finding that his current lumbar spine disability is related to in-service low back pain.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for cervical degenerative arthritis, cervical radiculopathy of both upper extremities, thoracolumbar degenerative arthritis, and lumbar radiculopathy of both lower extremities based on the evidence showing that these conditions began during and have continued since service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for thoracolumbar degenerative arthritis and left shoulder degenerative arthritis to obtain additional medical opinions.
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