Citation Nr: 19129697 Decision Date: 04/16/19 Archive Date: 04/16/19 DOCKET NO. 15-12 531 DATE: April 16, 2019 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for lumbar back, disc condition is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s lumbar back disability did not have onset in service, is not related to his active service, and did not manifest within one year after separation form active service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for entitlement to service connection for lumbar back, disc condition have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1101, 1110, 1112, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.307, 3.309. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active service from November 1959 to November 1979. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a February 2014 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Waco, Texas. The Veteran filed a Notice of Disagreement (NOD) with the rating decision in March 2014. A Statement of the Case (SOC) was issued in March 2015 and the Veteran filed his substantive appeal in April 2015. A Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC) was issued in April 2019. This appeal has been advanced on the Board’s docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.900 (c); 38 U.S.C. § 7107 (a)(2). Service connection may be granted for a disability resulting from a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active service. See 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303 (a). “To establish a right to compensation for a present disability, a Veteran must show: ‘(1) the existence of a present disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service’- the so-called ‘nexus’ requirement.” Holton v. Shinseki, 557 F.3d 1362, 1366 (Fed. Cir. 2010) (quoting Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Certain chronic diseases, including arthritis, may be presumed to have been incurred in or aggravated by service if manifest to a compensable degree within one year of discharge from service, even though there is no evidence of such disease during service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1101, 1112, 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307, 3.309(a). The Veteran was afforded a VA examination for back conditions in January 2014. The examiner diagnosed the Veteran with spondylosis with grade 1 retrolisthesis of L4 on L5. As such, the first element of service connection has been met. Regarding the second element, the Veteran’s service treatment records (STRs) indicate that the Veteran complained of “muscular pain from about L1 down back of legs” in September 1961; the medical professional’s impression was that the Veteran suffered from a muscle strain. The STRs also indicate that the Veteran complained of right flank pain and a muscle spasm in his lower back in March 1978. However, at the Veteran’s June 1979 examination upon retirement, the examiner marked that the Veteran’s spine and other musculoskeletal systems were normal. In his June 1979 self-assessed Report of Medical History, the Veteran marked “no” when asked if he had ever had recurrent back pain. The January 2014 VA examiner, who examined and interviewed the Veteran and reviewed his entire claims file, noted that the Veteran reported a back injury during active service in 1972 and intermittent back problems since retirement from active service. However, the examiner was of the opinion that the Veteran’s current back disability was less likely than not incurred in or caused by the Veteran’s active service. The examiner’s rationale for his opinion was that (1) there was no documentation that this disability was present during active service and (2) “degeneration of the spine is a natural part of aging and not caused by specific injuries in the past.” The Veteran has also submitted private medical records from December 2011 to July 2012 that show treatment for lower back pain. Although these records confirm that the Veteran has a current lumbar back disability, they neither indicate that the Veteran suffered from his current back disability during active service nor provide a nexus between the Veteran’s current back disability and his active service. The Board finds the adequate January 2014 VA examiner opinion to be the most probative evidence of record as to whether the Veteran’s current lumbar back disability was caused by his active service. The examiner’s rationale is logical, well-reasoned, and thorough, and takes into consideration the Veteran’s entire claims file. In sum, the Board finds the following facts from the record especially persuasive: the fact that the Veteran denied recurrent back pain on his Report of Medical History upon retirement; the fact that the examiner at the Veteran’s examination upon retirement noted that the Veteran had a normal spine; and the fact that the VA examiner noted that the Veteran’s current disability is a natural part of aging and therefore unlikely to have been caused by a specific injury or event in active service. The preponderance of evidence is against a finding that there is a nexus between the Veteran’s current lumbar back disability and his active service. Therefore, the claim of service connection for lumbar back, disc condition must be denied. There is no reasonable doubt to be resolved as to this issue. 38 U.S.C. § 5107 (b), 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. JAMES G. REINHART Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD N. Garver, Associate Counsel