Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2009

The Board denied service connection for the veteran's claimed conditions, finding that they were not related to his military service.

The appeal was remanded to the RO for additional development and readjudication in compliance with a Joint Motion for Remand from the Court.

The Board denied service connection for a low back condition, to include lumbar disc disease, as the evidence did not show that the veteran's current disability was related to his active military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability rating and TDIU, as the evidence did not support a higher rating or unemployability due to his service-connected lumbar spine disorder.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected back disability did not necessitate frequent hospitalizations or result in marked industrial impairment, and therefore denied an extraschedular rating.

The Board denied service connection for hypertension as it was not incurred in or caused by the veteran's active military service and is not related to his service-connected knee disabilities. The claim for a back disorder was remanded for further development.

The veteran's carpal tunnel syndrome of both upper extremities and cervical/lumbosacral strain do not meet the criteria for a higher disability rating.

The Board denied service connection for a chronic low back disability and lipomas/angiolipomas, as well as an increased rating for the postoperative residuals of total thyroidectomy.

The veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for service-connected residuals of a left knee injury with traumatic arthritis was denied, but new and material evidence was found to reopen the claim for service connection for degenerative disc disease (DDD) of the lumbar spine. Service connection was granted for DJD of the cervical spine and mixed posttraumatic/migraine headaches.

The appeal is remanded for new VA examinations to reassess the severity of the veteran's service-connected conditions.

The appeal is remanded for further development, including an examination to determine the etiology of the veteran's lumbar degenerative disease.

The veteran's lumbar degenerative disc disease with arthritis does not warrant a rating in excess of 40 percent. The claims for service connection for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy secondary to the low back disorder are remanded for further development.

The claim for an initial rating higher than 10 percent for hypertensive vascular disease was denied, and the claim for an initial rating higher than 10 percent for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine was remanded for further development.

The veteran's lumbosacral disability is primarily manifested by forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine of 45 degrees, with no evidence of ankylosis or incapacitating episodes.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a back disorder due to the lack of evidence linking these conditions to the veteran's active military service.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disorder was denied as there is no medical evidence linking the current disability to his period of active service.

The Board denied service connection for a hip condition and low back condition as there is no evidence of current disabilities, and the preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to the veteran's active military service or his service-connected right knee disability.

The veteran's lumbosacral strain and defective hearing do not meet the criteria for higher ratings.

The Board denied service connection for right and left shoulder disorders, generalized joint pain, an initial evaluation in excess of 30 percent for PTSD, an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for GERD, a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss, and evaluations in excess of 10 percent and 20 percent for the lumbar spine disability.

The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining updated medical records and scheduling new VA examinations.