Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2013

The Veteran's appeals have been resolved by the RO, and he has received staged ratings for his disabilities. As a result, there are no remaining issues to be decided.

The Board has ordered a remand due to the submission of new evidence and unclear examination findings. The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is being evaluated, as well as his claimed lower extremity radiculopathy.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied. The Board found no new and material evidence to reopen the claim of an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. Service connection was also denied for a skin disorder, low back disorder, sleep disorder, stomach disorder, penis deformity, prostate disorder, and heart disease.

The Veteran's chronic low back strain with degenerative joint disease L5/S1 is currently rated at 20 percent, and the evidence does not support a higher rating.

The Veteran's lumbar spondylosis has been rated at 20 percent since March 1, 2004. The Board granted a TDIU rating prior to September 16, 2010.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back and neck disabilities did not have their clinical onset in service or are otherwise related to service. The VA examinations and VHA opinion concluded that any current DJD and DDD of the lumbar spine were not incurred during service.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records from specific VA facilities and Social Security Administration records. The issues will be reconsidered under the appropriate criteria.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not currently have any neurological manifestations of a lumbar spine disability, and thus service connection for this condition is denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations to determine the current severity of her conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to insufficient examination reports addressing specific issues.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right knee disability, back disability, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, type 2. The Board found that there was no evidence of chronic conditions in service or within one year after separation from service, and that the Veteran did not have continuous symptoms since separation. Service connection could not be established on a direct basis due to lack of medical nexus between current disabilities and service. The Veteran's claim for diabetes mellitus, type 2, was denied as there is no evidence of herbicide exposure in Japan.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain updated VA treatment records and arrange for a VA examination. The issues of entitlement to an increased rating for lumbosacral strain with sacroilitis of both sacroiliac joints, TDIU, and service connection for ankylosing spondylitis are also being addressed.

The Veteran's appeal involves multiple service-connected musculoskeletal disabilities, including left knee arthritis, right knee arthritis, degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, left ankle degenerative arthritis, right shoulder arthritis, and impingement syndrome of the left shoulder. The issues on appeal are for initial ratings in excess of 10 percent for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disability is related to his active duty service and has granted service connection for this condition.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension and assigned a 10 percent rating for the low back strain, finding that both conditions are related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining a VA examination and reviewing outstanding medical records.

The Veteran's service-connected low back disability is primarily productive of mild degenerative arthritis with forward flexion to 85 degrees, and the examiner did not find any additional limitation due to pain or other factors. The current rating of 10 percent is therefore appropriate.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings was withdrawn, and the left ankle disability is rated at 20% prior to April 27, 2011, but not more than 10% beginning from that date.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to his death, and the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this claim.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability, including degenerative disc and joint disease, was not incurred in or aggravated by his active military service. The VA examiners concluded that the current condition is unrelated to his military service.