COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA 

Present: Judges Baker, Elder and Fitzpatrick 

MAC CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, INC. AND 

 BITUMINOUS CASUALTY CORPORATION 

 MEMORANDUM OPINION*

v. Record No. 2597-96-3 PER CURIAM 

 MARCH 11, 1997 

BOBBY G. HARRISON 

 FROM THE VIRGINIA WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION 

 (Michael F. Blair; Penn, Stuart & Eskridge, 

on brief), for appellants. 

 (Gerald F. Sharp; Browning, Lamie & Sharp, 

P.C., on brief), for appellee. 

 Mac Construction Company, Inc. and its insurer (hereinafter 

collectively referred to as "employer") contend that the Workers' 

Compensation Commission (commission) erred in finding that (1) 

Bobby G. Harrison (claimant) proved that his June 13, 1995 injury 

by accident caused a compensable aggravation of his preexisting 

back condition; and (2) the June 13, 1995 injury was not a known 

and expected result of claimant's violation of the restrictions 

imposed upon him by Dr. Neal A. Jewell. Upon reviewing the 

record and the briefs of the parties, we conclude that this 

appeal is without merit. Accordingly, we summarily affirm the 

commission's decision. Rule 5A:27.1

 

 *Pursuant to Code § 17-116.010 this opinion is not 

designated for publication. 

 1Employer did not appeal the commission's finding that 

claimant proved that the June 13, 1995 lifting incident 

constituted a compensable injury by accident. Accordingly, this 

finding is conclusive and binding on appeal. 
 2 

 On appeal, we view the evidence in the light most favorable 

to the prevailing party below. R.G. Moore Bldg. Corp. v. 

Mullins, 10 Va. App. 211, 212, 390 S.E.2d 788, 788 (1990). 

Factual findings made by the commission will be upheld on appeal 

if supported by credible evidence. James v. Capitol Steel 

Constr. Co., 8 Va. App. 512, 515, 382 S.E.2d 487, 488 (1989). 

 I. 

 On September 24, 1992, claimant sustained a compensable 

injury by accident resulting in a herniated disc. He underwent 

surgery for this condition in November 1992. As of July 1993, 

Dr. Jewell had released claimant to return to work with 

restrictions prohibiting him from repetitive bending, lifting, 

kneeling, or squatting, continuous bending or squatting, and 

lifting more than thirty pounds occasionally and fifteen pounds 

frequently. Claimant returned to work on light duty and 

continued to work, with occasional layoffs unrelated to his 

September 1992 injury, until June 13, 1995. Claimant stated that 

between July 1993 and June 13, 1995, he was never free from pain 

in his back and leg. 

 On June 13, 1995, claimant and three other men were carrying 

a fifteen to twenty foot pipe. As they lowered the pipe, 

claimant felt a "sting" in his back. Claimant sought medical 

treatment on June 13, 1995. On June 22, 1995, claimant reported 

the June 13, 1995 incident to Dr. Jewell, who noted that the 

lifting incident resulted in acute pain. Claimant told Dr. 
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Jewell that he had not been symptom-free since 1992. Dr. Jewell 

excused claimant from work and eventually required that he 

undergo several epidural steroid injections. On September 6, 

1995, Dr. Jewell noted that the June 13, 1995 accident caused an 

exacerbation of claimant's continuing and chronic back condition. 

 In a September 6, 1995 letter, Dr. Jewell stated that if the 

June 13, 1995 accident had not occurred, claimant could have 

continued to work as a flagman. Dr. Jewell opined that the June 

13, 1995 accident "aggravated the already present disc disease 

related to [claimant's] injury of September 1992." In his 

October 19, 1995 deposition, Dr. Jewell stated that claimant's 

post-June 13, 1995 disability was "directly related" to the June 

13, 1995 incident and "indirectly related" to the September 24, 

1992 accident. Dr. Jewell reiterated his opinion in a December 

10, 1995 letter. In that letter, Dr. Jewell opined that if 

claimant's symptoms had continued between 1993 and 1995, then 

claimant's June 13, 1995 accident was an aggravation of his 

preexisting chronic back condition. 

 It is well settled that when an injury by accident 

accelerates or aggravates a preexisting condition, disability 

resulting therefrom is compensable. Russell Loungewear v. Gray, 

2 Va. App. 90, 95, 341 S.E.2d 824, 826 (1986). In its role as 

fact finder, the commission was entitled to weigh the medical 

evidence and to accept Dr. Jewell's opinions. Dr. Jewell's 

opinions, coupled with claimant's testimony, provide credible 
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evidence to support the commission's finding that claimant proved 

that a new injury by accident on June 13, 1995 resulted in a 

compensable aggravation of claimant's preexisting back condition. 

 "In determining whether credible evidence exists, the appellate 

court does not retry the facts, reweigh the preponderance of the 

evidence, or make its own determination of the credibility of the 

witnesses." Wagner Enters., Inc. v. Brooks, 12 Va. App. 890, 

894, 407 S.E.2d 32, 35 (1991). 

 II. 

 Claimant's testimony provides credible evidence to support 

the commission's finding that the pipe lifted by claimant and his 

three coworkers on June 13, 1995 weighed approximately 100 

pounds. "The fact that there is contrary evidence in the record 

is of no consequence if there is credible evidence to support the 

commission's finding." Id. Based upon claimant's testimony, the 

commission could infer that, with all four men lifting the pipe 

with equal exertion, claimant's actions did not exceed Dr. 

Jewell's restriction prohibiting claimant from lifting more than 

thirty pounds. "Where reasonable inferences may be drawn from 

the evidence in support of the commission's factual findings, 

they will not be disturbed by this Court on appeal." Hawks v. 

Henrico County Sch. Bd., 7 Va. App. 398, 404, 374 S.E.2d 695, 698 

(1988). 

 For the reasons stated, we affirm the commission's decision.

 
 5 

 Affirmed.