COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA 

Present: Judges Willis, Frank and Clements 

HUSS, INC. AND 

 FIREMAN'S FUND INSURANCE COMPANY 

 MEMORANDUM OPINION*

v. Record No. 0930-01-1 PER CURIAM 

 AUGUST 14, 2001 

RICHARD EUGENE BOHANNAN 

 FROM THE VIRGINIA WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION 

 (Stephen R. Jackson; Willcox & Savage, P.C., 

on brief), for appellants. 

 (David A. Buzard; Bennett & Zydron, P.C., on 

brief), for appellee. 

 

* Pursuant to Code § 17.1-413, this opinion is not 

designated for publication. 

 Huss, Inc. and its insurer (hereinafter referred to as 

"employer") contend that the Workers' Compensation Commission 

erred in finding that Richard Eugene Bohannan (claimant) proved 

that his current disability is causally related to his 

compensable January 13, 2000 injury by accident. 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. See Rule 5A:27. 

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

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

Mullins, 10 Va. App. 211, 212, 390 S.E.2d 788, 788 (1990). "The 
actual determination of causation is a factual finding that will 

not be disturbed on appeal if there is credible evidence to 

support the finding." Ingersoll-Rand Co. v. Musick, 7 Va. App. 

684, 688, 376 S.E.2d 814, 817 (1989). 

Because [causation] is a factual 

determination, "[t]he testimony of a 

claimant may also be considered in 

determining causation, especially where the 

medical testimony is inconclusive." . . . 

[W]here "the [medical] reports reflect only 

the results of claimant's physical 

examination and do not purport to establish 

the cause or causes of [his] injury[,] . . . 

the commission was free to credit claimant's 

testimony at the hearing as a basis for its 

finding of causation." 

Strictly Stumps, Inc. v. Enoch, 33 Va. App. 792, 795, 537 S.E.2d 

19, 20-21 (2000) (quoting Dollar General Store v. Cridlin, 22 

Va. App. 171, 176-77, 468 S.E.2d 152, 154-55 (1996)). 

 The medical evidence and claimant's testimony support the 

commission's conclusion that his current disability is causally 

related to his compensable January 13, 2000 injury by accident. 

In finding that claimant proved his current back disability is 

causally related to his compensable January 13, 2000 injury by 

accident, the commission recognized that "the record does not 

include a definitive medical statement regarding causation of 

the claimant's disability." Thus, the commission, as it is 

permitted to do, considered claimant's testimony regarding 

causation. See id. In doing so, the commission made the 

following findings: 

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 The claimant's testimony regarding the 

mechanism of injury is consistent with his 

medical records. The medical records 

reflect that he had a preexisting diagnosis 

of osteoarthritis of the lumbar spine. On 

May 13, 1998, the claimant received a 10 

percent VA disability rating for 

"characteristic pain" which he indicated was 

a one or two on a scale of one to ten, with 

ten being severe. There is no evidence he 

had radiculopathy or muscle spasms in his 

back prior to January 13, 2000. The 

claimant described a specific incident that 

occurred at a specific point in time when he 

injured himself. He consistently reported 

that he felt a pop in his back while moving 

a tarp from the flatbed of his truck. The 

February 2000, MRI scan showed that in 

addition to preexisting spondylolisthesis, 

the claimant also had a herniated nucleus 

pulposus at L5-S1. This diagnosis is 

entirely consistent with his current 

symptoms, which began after he felt the pop 

in his back on January 13, 2000. There is 

no evidence that the claimant had a 

herniated nucleus pulposus prior to January 

13, 2000. 

* * * * * * * 

 It is undisputed that the claimant had 

preexisting osteoarthritis. He said that 

the last time he recalled receiving 

treatment for his back was almost a year 

prior to the current injury and that the 

problem resolved after several days. . . . 

It appears that [claimant] was largely 

symptom-free prior to January 13, 2000, and 

that after the work-related injury, he had a 

significant increase in back pain coupled 

with right leg radiculopathy, which had not 

been medically documented prior to that 

time. 

 Claimant's testimony and the uncontradicted medical records 

constituted credible evidence sufficient to prove that 

claimant's current disability is causally related to his 

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compensable January 13, 2000 injury by accident. As fact 

finder, the commission was entitled to discount Dr. John A. 

Williamson's statement on March 2, 2000, that "workers' comp may 

cause a problem because of a preexistence of the spondylosis and 

the degenerative disc disease. . . ." Dr. Williamson's 

statement did not constitute an opinion regarding the causation 

of claimant's current disability. 

The medical evidence and the reasonable 

inferences that flow from this evidence 

support [the commission's] findings. 

"Medical evidence is not necessarily 

conclusive, but is subject to the 

commission's consideration and weighing." 

Furthermore, on appeal, we "[do] not retry 

the facts, reweigh the preponderance of the 

evidence, or make [our] own determination of 

the credibility of the witnesses." 

Marriott Int'l, Inc. v. Carter, 34 Va. App. 209, 215-16, 539 

S.E.2d 738, 741 (2001) (citations omitted). 

 "The record in this case does not establish that the 

medical issue was so complex that the commission made findings 

in an area that could only be properly decided by medical 

experts. Because the testimony and medical evidence are 

uncontradicted and credible evidence supports the commission's 

finding, we affirm." Strictly Stumps, 33 Va. App. at 796, 537 

S.E.2d at 21. 

Affirmed. 

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