Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2004

The veteran's right knee disorder is not service connected. The Board has dismissed this issue due to the veteran withdrawing his appeal prior to a decision by the Board. His back disorder was also found not to be service-connected, and he does have a separate rating for an acquired neuropsychiatric disorder.

The Board has decided the veteran's claim for headaches and is remanding the issue of lumbosacral strain evaluation due to lack of recent VA examination.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and providing proper VCAA notice.

The veteran's claims for service connection for low back and skin conditions have not been reopened. Service connection for hypertension has been denied. The status of the remaining issues is pending.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disability, an initial evaluation in excess of 30 percent for migraine headaches, and an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for acne vulgaris. The appeal was not about service connection for low back disorder.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including VA examinations and consideration of the recently received service medical records.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of her degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, finding that December 7, 2000 was the earliest date on which a VA examiner concluded that her back condition was related to her service-connected left ankle disability.

The veteran's claim for an effective date earlier than September 27, 2001, for a rating of 10 percent for his service-connected low back disability is denied as there is no indication that the RO received the veteran's increased rating claim prior to September 27, 2001, or that his disability increased in severity during the one year prior to September 27, 2001.

The veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted. The Board finds that the veteran engaged in combat with the enemy and his lay testimony regarding the stressors he experienced during his service in Saudi Arabia is accepted as conclusive evidence of their occurrence.

The Board has determined that the veteran's chronic low back disorder, diagnosed as degenerative disc disease, is attributable to his active service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has determined that the veteran's low back disorder is service-connected, as it began during his military service. The gastrointestinal issues are also found to be related to service due to medication use for other service-connected conditions.

The Board found that the veteran did not timely perfect an appeal as to his claim for service connection for a low back disorder, and thus dismissed the appeal.

The veteran's claim for an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for service-connected lumbar sprain is being remanded due to the need to consider revised rating criteria and obtain additional medical examination.

The Board denied the veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection for a back disorder, finding that no new and material evidence had been received.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded due to a scheduling issue for his scheduled hearing. The claim of entitlement to an increased rating for thoracolumbar scoliosis will be reconsidered after the appropriate hearing.

The Board determined that the submitted evidence was not new and material to reopen the claim of service connection for a low back disability.

The Board has remanded the appellant's claims of service connection for back and foot disabilities, as well as his claim to reopen those claims. The issues are now pending before the RO for further development.

The Board has determined that the veteran's substantive appeals with respect to the issues of service connection for a back condition, including osteoarthritis and residuals of laminectomy; osteoarthritis of both knees; hearing loss; and tinnitus were not adequate. The appeal is now vacated due to the Court's order terminating the appeal.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for right elbow, low back, and right ankle disabilities due to a lack of current evidence of chronic conditions.

The Board found no relationship between the service-connected thoracic spine disability and either a cervical or lumbar spine disability, thus denying both claims for secondary service connection.