Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2005

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine if the veteran's low back disability is related to service, and has remanded the case for further action.

The Board has determined that the veteran's low back disorder, diagnosed as left pelvic subluxation with mechanical lower back pain, was incurred in or aggravated by military service. The issue of bilateral hearing loss disability is addressed in the REMAND portion and is being remanded to the RO.

The Board has denied service connection for arthritis of the right hip, lumbar spine, and right lower extremity as these conditions are not attributable to a service-connected disease or injury.

The Board found that the veteran's depression and low back disability were not related to his military service, thus denying both claims.

The veteran's TDIU was granted effective January 30, 1979, as he became unemployable due to his service-connected disabilities on that date.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed conditions, including low back disability (including arthritis), bilateral pes planus, scarring behind the ears, and chronic headache disability, were not incurred or aggravated during his first period of active military service. The evidence does not establish a nexus between these conditions and service.

The Board denied service connection for low back pain and left leg/hip pain, as well as a higher rating for the right axillary vein disability. The veteran's current conditions are not considered to be related to his military service.

The Board denied increased ratings for the veteran's service-connected cervical strain and lumbosacral strain.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased rating and service connection, finding no evidence of a current hip disability or degenerative changes in the lumbar spine that are secondary to his right knee disability. The initial rating for postoperative residuals of a right knee medial meniscectomy was also denied.

The Board found that the veteran's low back disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by service and may not be presumed to have been so incurred.

The Board has determined that the veteran's right ear hearing loss and low back disability are both service-connected. The decision is based on evidence showing a history of noise exposure during service, which led to current hearing loss, and an injury in service resulting in current degenerative disc disease and degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine.

The VA has determined that the veteran's back disability is not proximately due to or the result of his service-connected thrombophlebitis of the left and right legs and the residuals of a fracture of the right femur.

The veteran's service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for a certificate of eligibility for assistance in acquiring specially adapted housing or a special home adaptation grant.

The veteran's service-connected lumbar and thoracic spine injuries with arthritis are rated at 60 percent, qualifying for a TDIU rating due to his functional impairment.

The Board found that the veteran's current disabilities, including degenerative joint disease of the thoracic spine, lumbar disc disease with lower extremity neuropathy, torn medial meniscus and chondromalacia, left knee, and bilateral carpel tunnel syndrome, are not related to his service. The examiner opined that these conditions were due to post-service occupational stress.

The veteran is not entitled to an effective date earlier than November 20, 2000 for a grant of total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU) because he was employed full-time from October 1999 to November 2000 and had the necessary service-connected disabilities to meet the criteria for TDIU.

The Board denied service connection for multiple joint disorders, including lumbosacral spine disorder, bilateral knee and hip disorders, bilateral foot disorder, and left shoulder disorder. The evidence did not support a finding of in-service injury or disease that led to these conditions.

The Board has determined that the veteran's degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine was incurred in service and is granted as direct service connection.

The Board has remanded the case due to procedural issues and requests for additional evidence. The veteran is entitled to a hearing before an RO Decision Review Officer on both his back disorder claim and left knee disorder increased rating claim.

The Board granted an increased rating to 40 percent for lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc disease effective March 1977. The veteran's right leg sciatic syndrome was also rated at 40 percent, effective March 25, 2003. The RO granted the veteran a permanent and total disability rating based on his service-connected back disability as of March 25, 2003.