Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2004

The veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and conducting further examinations.

The Board denied all issues on appeal, including increased ratings for the veteran's service-connected low back disorder, right knee disability, and hypertension.

The Board found that the veteran's low back disorder did not have its origins in service or for many years thereafter, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board found that a back disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by service and is not related to the veteran's service-connected knee disabilities. Therefore, the claim for service connection for a back disorder secondary to his service-connected knee disabilities was denied.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining medical records and arranging for a VA examination.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for reopening his service connection claims for bilateral knee, back, right shoulder, and bilateral leg disabilities due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a right shoulder disability and neck disability, finding no competent evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The veteran's cervical spine disorder is currently rated at 20 percent under the amended schedule for rating spine disabilities, effective from September 23, 2002. The Board finds that this rating adequately reflects the severity of his disability.

The Board found no evidence to support the veteran's claim of service connection for a back disorder, including as secondary to bilateral pes cavus. The Board concluded that the current lumbar spine pathologies are not shown to have been acquired in service or caused by a service-connected disability.

The veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain is rated at 40 percent, the highest available rating under VA guidelines for this condition.

The Board denied the veteran's increased rating claims for his service-connected hyperthyroidism and lumbar and thoracic scoliosis, finding that the evidence did not support a higher disability rating under the applicable criteria.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining additional medical records and scheduling a VA examination to assess his spine conditions.

The Board found that the veteran does not have a current low back or left knee disability, and that any such disabilities are not related to his service-connected right knee disability.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a right leg condition, somatization disorder secondary to his service-connected residuals of fracture of the right middle finger, and an increased rating for residuals of a fracture of the right middle finger due to failure to report for a scheduled VA examination.

The Board has granted service connection for the veteran's low back disorder, finding that new and material evidence was submitted to reopen the claim. The issue is now resolved in favor of the veteran.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected low back disability is being remanded due to the need for additional development and consideration of new regulatory criteria.

The Board denied the veteran's appeal of the propriety of initial evaluations for degenerative disc disease at L4-5 and L5-S1, finding that the criteria for an evaluation in excess of 10 percent prior to August 7, 1996, were not met. The criteria for a 20 percent evaluation are met as of August 7, 1996, but no higher evaluations are warranted.

The VA performed a laminectomy and diskectomy on the veteran's L4-5 vertebrae in October 1996. However, there is no evidence to support that this procedure resulted in additional disability of the low back.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining additional VA medical records and scheduling an examination to evaluate the service-connected low back disability under different rating criteria.

The Board has granted the veteran's claim for a total disability evaluation based on individual unemployability due to his service-connected disabilities, particularly his low back disability.