Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2001

The Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) has denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disorder, including arthritis. The BVA found that there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between the veteran's service-connected right ankle disability and his current low back disorder.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected postoperative low back disability warrants a rating of 40 percent, effective from February 1998.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability, finding that it was not related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to a significant change in the law regarding veterans' claims assistance.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for service connection for a back disorder and a right knee disorder have been denied due to lack of well-grounded claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's low back disorder does not meet or approximate the criteria for a rating in excess of 40 percent, and therefore denied his claim.

The veteran's service does not meet the criteria for basic eligibility for nonservice-connected pension benefits due to his discharge being 'other than honorable' and lack of active duty during a period of war.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for a back disability, including arthritis, based on new and material evidence. The case is now remanded to determine if service connection should be granted.

The Board has determined that the appellant's degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine warrants a 60 percent evaluation, which is more than the maximum available under the applicable criteria.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The RO assigned separate 10 percent ratings for degenerative changes of the lumbar spine with degenerative arthrosis and degenerative changes of the left knee, but did not grant any additional benefits.

The Board denied service connection for degenerative joint disease of the left knee and degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, finding no evidence linking these conditions to service. The claim for a chronic stomach disorder was also denied as new and material evidence had not been submitted.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grant due to his service-connected disabilities not meeting the criteria for such benefits.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hearing loss and a back disability, as well as his request for a compensable evaluation for asbestosis. The evidence does not support these claims.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a back disability and an increased evaluation for his left knee disability, as well as denying a compensable evaluation for his bilateral hearing loss. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection due to lack of in-service diagnosis or continuity of symptomatology.

The Board dismissed the veteran's appeal due to his death, and no service connection was granted for any of the claimed conditions.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied. The VA found that sinusitis did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating, and benign prostatic hypertrophy was also rated as noncompensable.

The Board denied restoration of a 20 percent evaluation for lumbosacral strain due to the veteran's failure to report for a VA medical examination scheduled in October 2000.

The Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) has denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disorder, finding that there is no evidence to support the claim and concluding that any current low back disorder did not originate in or was aggravated by military service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and determining whether there is a basis for assigning a rating in excess of 40 percent for the appellant's service-connected back disability.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities have been evaluated at the lowest possible rating due to lack of evidence supporting higher evaluations.