Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2012

The Board has remanded the case back to the RO for further development and readjudication consistent with the Court's decision.

The Board found that the Veteran's current low back disability is not causally related to his active duty service or any incident/injury therein.

The Board found that the appellant's current back disability is not causally related to his active service or any incident therein, including a 1976 Tae Kwon Do injury. Therefore, the claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's claim for a TDIU was denied due to the lack of meeting schedular requirements prior to June 10, 2003. The case is now referred to the Director of Compensation and Pension Service for consideration of an extraschedular rating based on review of the claims folder and evaluation of the Veteran.

The Board has granted service connection for a bowel disorder manifested by chronic diarrhea. The issues of service connection for high blood pressure and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine are remanded.

The Board finds that the Veteran did not experience chronic low back disorder symptomatology during his first period of active service and does not have a current disability related to service. The Board therefore denies the claim for service connection for a low back disorder.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disability (CAD), and migraine headaches are all found to be secondary to his service-connected PTSD with alcohol abuse. The musculoskeletal disabilities are also found to be related to the service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain was initially granted service connection and rated at 10 percent after July 18, 2005. The Board found that a higher rating of 20 percent is warranted for the condition based on its effects on scoliosis.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Board found that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen the claims for left knee, low back, and left ankle disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations and obtaining pertinent treatment records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability is related to his military service, and therefore grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for low back disability and denied it on the merits. Service connection was also denied for obesity, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and sleep apnea as secondary to obesity.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed because he did not file a timely substantive appeal for the February 2007 rating decision.

The Veteran's appeals have been dismissed as he has requested that the issues be returned to the RO for reconsideration.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability is rated at 40% for the entire increased rating period, and has now been found to more nearly approximate unfavorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine, warranting a 50% rating.

The Veteran's right knee arthritis and residuals of thoracic and lumbar spine fractures are found to be related to his active duty service.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's withdrawal of the appeal.

The Veteran's claim for service connection of a lower back disorder is being remanded due to the need for further examination and development.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected postoperative herniated disc, L5-S1, with degenerative disc disease was denied. His claim for TDIU due to service-connected back disability was also denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for additional development of his claims, including obtaining updated treatment records and considering all evidence received since November 25, 2008.