Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2012

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hip disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and lumbar spine disorder have been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal. The claim of service connection for a psychiatric condition has been granted.

The Board found that the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by military service and denied his claim.

The Board found that the Veteran's current lumbar spine disability is not related to service or his service-connected right and left knee disabilities, nor was arthritis shown within one year following discharge from service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right side sciatica, assessed as sciatica, was incurred in service and granted service connection for this condition.

The Veteran seeks service connection for a low back disability, which he contends is related to an in-service injury. The case was remanded due to the need for another VA examination.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar strain has been rated based on the severity of his symptoms, with a 20% rating from September 7, 2011 and a 40% rating from September 27, 2007. The Board found that these ratings were appropriate given the current level of disability.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected left S1 lumbar radiculopathy was denied as the evidence did not show that his disability warranted a higher than 10 percent rating.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of a current disability. The claims for service connection for lumbosacral spine disability, lower extremity radiculopathy (claimed as secondary to the lumbosacral spine disability), and erectile dysfunction are being remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for a low back disability due to new and material evidence submitted by the Veteran. However, further examination is needed to determine if the current low back disability is related to service or was aggravated by service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining SSDI records and VA vocational rehabilitation file. The Veteran is to be scheduled for an orthopedic examination to determine the nature and etiology of his back disability.

The Board has decided to remand the claim for further development due to incomplete service records and the need for a VA examination.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for a higher rating for his degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and service connection for a psychiatric disorder, headaches, cognitive changes, and memory loss as due to an undiagnosed illness. The Veteran's claim for service connection was reopened based on new evidence.

The Veteran's claims for higher initial ratings for his low back disability and associated lower extremity radiculopathy were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not warrant a rating higher than 30 percent for the low back disability or higher than 10 percent for the associated radiculopathy.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is currently rated at 40 percent, and the evidence does not support a higher rating.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine attributable to active service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected spondylolisthesis of the lumbosacral spine was granted, with a 20 percent disability rating effective from April 23, 1991. The claim for TDIU prior to June 23, 2010, remains pending.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's chronic lumbar spine degenerative joint disease is related to his active service, including a landmine explosion during training in 1944.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's appeal for a higher initial rating for degenerative disc disease at L5-S1 with facet arthropathy is withdrawn. The claim of service connection for bilateral foot disorder (pes planus) was denied as there is no evidence to support its onset during or immediately following service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar strain does not warrant a disability rating in excess of 20 percent, but has granted a separate 10 percent disability rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy associated with his low back disability.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was granted a 10 percent rating from July 27, 2007 to May 10, 2009. Since then, he is entitled to a separate 10 percent rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy.