Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2009

The Board has determined that an examination is necessary to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's low back disability, which may be related to service. The case will be remanded for this purpose.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current low back disability, headache (migraine) or PTSD. Therefore, service connection for these conditions is denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development due to the inadequacy of a previous VA examination and opinion.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for back, left arm, and knee disabilities. The claim for left thumb disability was not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have service connection for several conditions, including low back disability, loss of smell, colon disability, testicle disability, right knee disability, and rib disability. The claims were denied as there is no evidence to support a direct relationship between these disabilities and active military service.

The Veteran's claim for a TDIU is being remanded due to the need for additional VA examination and development of medical records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection have not been reopened due to lack of new and material evidence. The issues regarding carpal tunnel syndrome, gastrointestinal disability, deviated nasal septum, sinusitis, and other conditions are also denied.

The Veteran does not have right elbow tendonitis, left elbow tendonitis, or a low back disability that is the result of disease or injury incurred in or aggravated during active military service.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's lumbar and cervical spine disorders, finding that these conditions are related to his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, which include depression, cervical spine strain, traumatic injury to the lumbosacral spine with strain, post-traumatic right supraorbital neuropathy, and visual field defect of the right eye with glaucoma, have been rated based on their individual effects. The combined rating is 80 percent.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for mechanical low back pain was denied as the evidence did not show any incapacitating episodes or severe limitation of motion, and the current disability picture does not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including skin disability, left knee disability (secondary to right knee), low back disability, concussion, and depression. The evidence did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating these claims.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disorder is not related to an incident during service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disorder was not incurred in or aggravated during service and is not causally related to service, including any incident therein. As such, the claim for service connection for a low back disorder is denied.

The Board has ordered the VA to obtain treatment records from Dr. E. for the period from June 1985 to April 2004, and then review the expanded record to readjudicate the Veteran's claim on appeal.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's case for further development, including providing him with 'old' diagnostic codes for evaluating intervertebral disc syndrome and obtaining all VA medical records from June 2004 to the present.

The Veteran's low back strain is currently rated as 10 percent disabling.,The Veteran's post traumatic arthritis of the cervical spine is currently rated as 10 percent disabling.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence linking any heart condition to service or a service-connected disability.

The Veteran's claim for PTSD was reopened, and he is now entitled to a 10 percent rating for his service-connected sinusitis with allergic rhinitis. The Veteran's lumbar spine disability remains at the 20 percent level prior to August 7, 2007, but any increase in severity after that date would require further evidence.