Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2009

The Board has remanded the case for clarification of whether the Veteran has underlying pathology for his diagnosed left hip, bilateral knee, and low back pain. The claim will be further developed to determine if service connection can be established.

The Board found that the appellant does not have a current low back disability and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has remanded the case due to procedural and evidentiary development needs.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for the Veteran's service connection claims, finding that her initial claims were submitted after her discharge from active duty and thus not entitled to an earlier effective date.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including a VA spine examination and compliance with VCAA requirements. The Veteran's claim will be reconsidered based on all evidence.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not combine to preclude substantially gainful employment, and therefore denied all increased rating claims.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disorder as secondary to his service-connected right knee disorders, finding no evidence of direct or presumptive service connection and insufficient medical opinion supporting secondary service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected left ear hearing loss, allergic rhinitis, and lumbar strain were all granted with effective dates of June 9, 2002. The Veteran was awarded a noncompensable evaluation for his service-connected eye disability. His initial compensable evaluation for lumbar strain was assigned on May 19, 2003.

The Veteran's service-connected low back disability is currently rated at 40 percent, and the Board has determined that an evaluation in excess of this rating is not warranted.

The Board found that the Veteran's current lumbar spine disorder is not related to his active service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for a Travel Board hearing. The issues include seeking compensable evaluation for left flank pain, service connection for left arm numbness, service connection for left leg weakness, and service connection for lumbar disc disease.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a current chronic lower back disability and there is no competent evidence linking his lower back disorder to his active duty service. As such, the claim for service connection for a lower back disorder is denied.

The VA determined that the Veteran's current low back disability was not incurred or aggravated by his military service, and arthritis is not presumed to have been incurred in service.

The Veteran's low back disability has been rated at 40% since June 2000, and the claim for a higher rating is denied as his condition does not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher rating under the current schedular criteria.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for lumbosacral myositis and major depression disorder were denied. The RO continued the current ratings under revised criteria.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for low back disorder, hip disorder, and right foot disorder were denied. The claim for an initial disability rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD was granted with a 50% rating.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated medical records and scheduling a VA examination to assess his current disabilities and their impact on employment.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the case is dismissed.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain with degenerative changes is currently rated at 20 percent, and the Board has determined that a higher rating of 40 percent is warranted.

The Board has denied the appellant's claims for service connection for headaches, a low back condition, hearing loss, and right hand and wrist conditions due to lack of medical evidence showing current disabilities.