Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2003

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for bilateral defective hearing. The issue of whether a coccyx injury with low back problems is related to military service remains unresolved.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a direct relationship between his current condition and his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for residuals of a left hand injury, described as scars on the left 3rd and 4th fingers. Service connection was also granted for a low back disorder and a skin disorder. However, service connection for PTSD was denied due to lack of diagnosis.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to a declaration of forfeiture against the veteran, which rendered moot the original claim for service connection.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including evaluations under the revised criteria for rating intervertebral disc syndrome (IDS).

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating, finding that new evidence did not reopen his low back disorder claim and that arthritis of the right leg, cervical spine disorder, and psychiatric disorder were not related to service or a service-connected condition. The residuals of a right ankle sprain were rated at 20%.

The Board found that there is no direct relationship between the veteran's cervical spine disorder and service, nor has his service-connected lumbar disability caused or aggravated it. The claim for service connection was denied.

The veteran's organic brain syndrome was granted a 100% disability rating, and his hemorrhoids were granted a 10% disability rating. The claims for service connection for low back disorder, bilateral knee disorder, left hand cramping, and right shoulder cramping were denied. The claim of new and material evidence to reopen the carpal tunnel syndrome was dismissed due to lack of timely appeal.

The Board has granted an increased evaluation of 60 percent for traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine with degenerative disc disease, effective from October 11, 1994. The veteran's residuals of a fractured left fibula are currently rated as noncompensable.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability has been remanded due to the need for additional development under the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA).

The veteran's service-connected low back disability is rated at 60 percent, the maximum available under the old version of Diagnostic Code 5293 for intervertebral disc syndrome. The decision grants an increased rating based on pronounced intervertebral disc syndrome.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection and higher evaluations for several conditions, including shortness of breath, chronic joint pain, arthritis of the right knee due to trauma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, sleep apnea, and hemorrhoids.

The Board has determined that further action is required to comply with the requirements of the VCAA and the implementing regulations. The case will be returned to the RO for readjudication.

The Board has granted the veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability, specifically lumbosacral strain, finding that it was incurred during active duty.

The Board has granted service connection for the veteran's low back disability, finding that it is related to his active service.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for residuals of a head injury, to include memory loss and a back disorder. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to additional development being required, including obtaining a complete report of the VA orthopedic examination and ensuring all notification and development action needed to fairly adjudicate the claim on appeal has been accomplished.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for increased ratings for right shoulder and low back disabilities have been denied as there is no evidence to support higher disability ratings under applicable rating criteria.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for a rating in excess of 40 percent for lumbosacral disc pathology, service connection for a skin disorder, and TDIU.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed psychiatric disability and seizure disorder were not incurred or aggravated by service, nor may they be presumed to have been incurred in service. The back and neck disabilities are also not established as being related to service.