Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2011

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability was not incurred or aggravated in service and is not otherwise related to his service-connected left knee disability. As a result, the claim for service connection for low back disability is denied.

The Veteran's low back disability was initially rated at 10 percent prior to May 25, 2011. Since then, he has been assigned a 20 percent rating effective from the date of his most recent VA examination on May 25, 2011.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including postoperative residuals of multiple lumbosacral surgeries with degenerative joint and disc disease and left lower extremity radiculopathy, do not meet the criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a).

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his service-connected spondylolisthesis and left lower extremity radiculopathy were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 20 percent for the spine condition or a rating in excess of 10 percent for the radiculopathy.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine and bilateral knee disabilities are being remanded due to the submission of new evidence. The RO will consider this evidence in their re-adjudication.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and sciatica as secondary to a low back disability due to lack of competent evidence supporting these claims, with the VA examiner providing a negative nexus opinion.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability, finding that his current condition is not related to his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for degenerative disorders of the cervical and lumbar spine, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his in-service helicopter crash during combat operations.

The Veteran's degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and cervical spine disorder are found to be incurred in service, warranting service connection.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for low back and neck disorders due to a lack of available service treatment records. The Veteran is seeking service connection for these conditions, which he attributes to an accident in service where he fell from a truck.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder, including obtaining service treatment records and a VA examination.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for chronic lumbar strain and chondromalacia patella of the left knee were denied. The Veteran is not entitled to a higher disability rating for his service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine is currently rated at 10 percent, but does not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development of his claims, including obtaining outstanding medical records and scheduling VA examinations to assess the severity of his disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's cervical spine disability warrants a 20 percent rating, but not higher. The lumbar spine disability does not warrant any increased rating.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's currently diagnosed low back and bilateral leg disabilities are not related to military service, and therefore denied both claims for service connection.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain additional medical opinions and evidence for the appellant's claims of service connection for traumatic brain injury residuals and low back disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's Substantive Appeal was timely filed, and thus his appeal to establish that a Substantive Appeal of the January 2006 and April 2006 rating decisions was timely filed is granted. The RO should then review the claims file (to specifically include an initial review of the evidence received since the August 2007 SOC) and readjudicate the propriety of the rating reduction for the Veteran's left shoulder disability, and the matters of the ratings assigned for his low back disability and left shoulder disability.

The Veteran's appeals for increased evaluations of his service-connected right elbow disorder, left elbow disorder, right thumb disorder, lumbar strain, diverticulitis, and hypertension have been withdrawn. The Veteran is now assigned a noncompensable initial evaluation for each condition.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is currently evaluated at 40 percent, and the Board finds that this evaluation is appropriate given the evidence of record.