Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2014

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to scheduling issues, and no specific rating or effective date was assigned.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need to verify qualifying periods of service and obtain an examination for a low back disability. The appeal is pending further development.

The Board has ordered additional development regarding the Veteran's claims, including obtaining records from his time in prison. The case is being remanded for further review after this development.

The Board found that the Veteran's lumbar spine disability does not warrant a rating in excess of 10 percent, and denied her claims for increased ratings.

The claims are being remanded for further development, including scheduling a VA examination and obtaining additional medical records. The Veteran's service-connected low back disability is still under consideration.

The Veteran's combined service-connected disabilities are 60 percent disabling due to a common etiology: right hip degenerative arthritis, left hip degenerative arthritis, and lumbosacral strain. The evidence shows the Veteran is unemployable solely due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disability is present and was incurred during his period of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) in May 1995, thus granting service connection.

The Board found that the appellant's low back disorder is not attributable to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA opinion regarding whether the Veteran's current low back disability is related to service. The Veteran will need a new VA examination and a re-adjudication of his claim.

The Board has remanded the case for additional procedural development, including consideration of new VA treatment records and issuance of a Supplemental Statement of the Case.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to outstanding VA and private treatment records, as well as a new VA medical examination. The Veteran's claim of service connection for a lumbar spine disability will be reconsidered.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to the Veteran's inability to participate in a VA examination due to dementia and his residence at a nursing home. The AMC must determine the feasibility of performing the examination at the VA assisted living facility or have a VA employee travel to the nursing home where he resides.

The Veteran's low back disability is manifested by painful motion, but flexion is not limited to 30 degrees or less and there is no evidence of favorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine. The criteria for a higher rating are not met.

The Veteran's low back disability, rated at 40 percent prior to May 15, 2012, does not meet the criteria for a higher rating from that date.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's IBS is a separate disability from, and was aggravated by, his service-connected fibromyalgia. The low back disability claim will be remanded for further examination and opinion.

The Veteran's appeal involves multiple secondary service connection claims for various disabilities, including knees, ankles, and back conditions. The case is being remanded to obtain additional medical records and conduct further examinations.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's psychiatric disability is related to a personality disorder present prior to service, while his lumbar spine disability is not shown during or within one year after service and does not meet the criteria for presumptive service connection.

The Veteran's claims for increased rating, reopening of service connection claim for bilateral hip disability, and TDIU were denied. The low back disability was found not to meet the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, depression, bilateral knee and hip disorders, and low back disorder. The reopened claims are now considered together as all acquired psychiatric conditions are included.

The Board has reopened the previously denied claims of service connection for sinusitis and a low back disorder, but remanded the issue of service connection for pes planus due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran is required to undergo VA examinations to determine if he has these conditions related to his military service.