Citation Nr: 20028032
Decision Date: 04/21/20	Archive Date: 04/21/20

DOCKET NO. 18-54 340
DATE: April 21, 2020

ORDER

Service connection for a low back disability is granted.

FINDING OF FACT

The Veteran has a confirmed diagnosis of lumbar spine osteoarthritis with intervertebral disc syndrome and degenerative disc disease (DDD). He has presented competent and consistent lay reports of low back symptoms that began during service that he did not seek treatment for but nonetheless persisted intermittently over the years. He has also specifically explained that his work in engine rooms aboard naval ships involved manipulating heavy equipment, climbing and twisting through tight spaces and using angled ladders, and other such activities involving “odd body positionings and stress” with effects that went “underreported,” but produced both pain and neurological problems (e.g., tingling and numbness) that persisted over the years. The only medical opinion of record is a negative VA opinion that fails to properly consider the relevance of the aforementioned competent lay evidence and, critically, appears to concede (without explanation or reconciliation with the ultimate negative conclusion) that the Veteran has “additional loss of function that cannot be explained by [the] normal aging process.” Considering the above and the fact that arthritis is a chronic disease under 38 U.S.C. § 1112 and C.F.R. § 3.307 and the Veteran has provided competent lay evidence of continuous symptoms since service, the Board finds service connection must be presumed under the law. 

CONCLUSION OF LAW

The criteria for service connection for a low back disability have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1112, 5107(b) (2018); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303(b), 3.307, 3.309 (2019).

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION

The appellant is a Veteran who served on active duty from June 1977 to August 1982. This matter is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from an April 2017 rating decision. For the reasons outlined above, the Board grants the appeal in full.

 

 

VICTORIA MOSHIASHWILI

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	M. Yuan, Counsel

The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.