The Board has found new and relevant evidence for the Veteran's claims of service connection for back and right knee disabilities. The claim for a back disability is granted, while the claim for a right knee disability is remanded due to insufficient rationale in supporting opinions.
The deciding factor: New medical opinion supports a link between the Veteran's military duties and his current back condition, but there are conflicting statements regarding the cause of his right knee disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine, Residuals, right knee meniscectomy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2026
- Citation
- A26040107
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 A26040107.
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 Board has granted a 20 percent rating for degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine from April 13, 2015 to January 7, 2019.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates of March 21, 2024 for service connection to the Veteran for degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine; irritable bowel syndrome (IBS); and radiculopathy, left lower, sciatic.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for further development, including obtaining a more comprehensive VA examination to assess the severity of the Veteran's degenerative disc disease, thoracolumbar spine.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was granted a 20 percent rating from April 29, 2010, but no higher. The claim for TDIU prior to March 2, 2014, was denied.
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