Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2010

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability did not manifest within one year of her separation from service and is not related to her active service. The claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for PTSD and lumbar spine disabilities are being remanded to the RO for further action.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, finding that they are not related to his active service or any service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, do not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disorder and granted it. The decision also addressed other issues, including service connection for bilateral knee disorders and PTSD.

The Veteran's claims for increased rating and service connection were denied. The claim to reopen his organic brain syndrome was also denied due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board denied an increase in a 10 percent rating prior to May 14, 1997 and a 20 percent rating from May 14, 1997 to July 6, 1998. The Veteran's claim for a higher rating was granted effective from July 7, 1998 to May 19, 1999, but denied thereafter.

The Board found that the appellant's current low back disability is not proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected left ankle and right great toe disabilities, and thus denied service connection on a secondary basis.

The Veteran's low back, respiratory, memory loss, and joint pain conditions were not incurred in or aggravated by service.,Service connection was denied for all claimed disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to insufficient evidence to decide the case, including a need for a VA examination.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral knee, cervical spine, and left hip disabilities due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to active duty service or any service-connected condition.

The Board denied service connection for left knee and low back disorders, finding that the Veteran did not sustain injuries to these areas during service or within a year after service. The preponderance of evidence showed that any current conditions were not related to service.

The Veteran's PTSD has been granted and rated at 30 percent. The issues of service connection for erectile dysfunction (secondary to a service-connected disability) and TDIU have been addressed in the REMAND portion.

The Board found that there is no evidence of a current low back disorder having developed or permanently increased in severity during any period of service, and denied the claim for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back condition is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining relevant employment records and providing an updated VA examination.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current back condition is caused by or a result of his military service, specifically due to carrying weight on his back over a period of years while in the military. The VA examiner opined that it was at least as likely as not that the Veteran's back condition was permanently aggravated by routine activities of reserve duty.

The Veteran's service-connected traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine is rated at 40 percent effective January 5, 2007.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection have been denied. The Board found no new evidence to reopen the claim of segmental dysfunction, cervical spine.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disability and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities, finding no evidence linking these conditions to service.