Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2013

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims regarding his left knee disability, B12 deficiency and anemia (claimed as blood deficiencies), memory loss, fatigue, neck disorder, back disorder, and lung disorder. The effective dates for these decisions are not specified.

The Veteran's appeal of all remaining issues has been withdrawn by his authorized representative.

The Board found that the Veteran's current lower back disability is not related to his service and denied his claim.

The Board found no credible evidence of an in-service back injury, and thus denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for arthritis of the lumbar spine and a left shoulder disorder has been dismissed as there is no case or controversy involving these claims. The RO determined that the Veteran was already service-connected for arthritis/degenerative joint disease of his lumbar spine, which encompasses any arthritis present.

The Board found that the Veteran's current low back disability was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service and may not be presumed to have been incurred in service.

The Board has ordered a remand to obtain additional medical records and conduct an examination to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's back condition, including whether it is related to service or his service-connected right leg fracture.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left knee, back, and bilateral hip disabilities are not related to his active service. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding of direct service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further action, including scheduling a hearing before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected degenerative changes of the lumbosacral spine was granted, with a current evaluation of 20 percent. The effective date for this grant is set at October 31, 2007.

The Veteran's degenerative disc disease and degenerative joint disease of the thoracolumbar spine resulted in pain with limited motion, but no unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes. The claim for a higher rating was granted.

The Board has remanded the case to attempt to obtain service records and a VA examination, as well as additional development of the claims file.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right shoulder disability, right arm disability, lumbar spine disability, and lung or respiratory disability as there was no current diagnosis of these conditions.

The Board has denied all service connection claims for the Veteran's kidney disability, sinus disability, hypertension, back disability, multiple joint disability (including arthritis), and acquired psychiatric disorder.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's low back disability, specifically whether it is related to his in-service injury while attempting to raise a telephone pole cross arm.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions, finding that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen his diabetes mellitus claim. The other claims were also denied.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the case is dismissed.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to fully consider the Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability, including consideration of his reported in-service injury and any aggravation during military service.

The Veteran's service-connected back disability was increased to a 60 percent rating effective December 7, 2012. Prior to that date, the disability remained at 20 percent.

The Board found no evidence of a head injury in service and concluded that the Veteran's current memory loss is not related to his military service.