Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2016

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disorder and psychiatric disorders are related to his military service, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and his bilateral eye iritis has been granted. The claim for a back disability is still pending.,Service connection for the Veteran's current back disability is being remanded due to incomplete information.

The Veteran is granted service connection for PTSD, cervical spine condition, and lumbar spine condition secondary to his service-connected residuals of a right ankle fracture. His CAD remains at 30 percent.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, low back disorder, left eye disorder and nose/sinus disorder have been granted. The effective date is not specified.

The Board has granted the Veteran's request to reopen her service connection claim for a lower back disability. The underlying claims for lower extremity disorders are being remanded for further development.

The Veteran's service-connected right and left knee disabilities, as well as his back disability, have been granted a 100 percent evaluation based on the total left knee replacement effective April 19, 2016. The remaining issues remain on appeal.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain with degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the sacroiliac joints with residuals of a fracture of the 12th thoracic (T12) vertebra was found to be manifested by forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine to 30 degrees or less, warranting a 40 percent rating.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's upper back disability and right knee injury are related to service, thus granting service connection for these conditions under the theory of direct service connection.

The appeal has been dismissed as the appellant withdrew his appeal.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not show a current bilateral hearing loss disability as defined by VA regulatory criteria, and thus denied this claim. For the rating period from December 12, 2007, the Veteran is granted a 100 percent schedular rating for hypothyroidism due to service connection. The issue of entitlement to TDIU is moot given the grant of a 100 percent schedular rating for hypothyroidism. SMC at the housebound rate was awarded from October 24, 2008 to January 14, 2013.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine disability and cervical spine disability, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between these conditions and his active service.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability is not service-connected, as there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and his active service. The right hip disability claim was also denied.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to inadequate medical opinions and further development is required.

The Veteran's migraine headaches are rated at a maximum of 50 percent since January 22, 2009. The effective date for the award of TDIU is set to July 20, 2009.

The Veteran's current residuals of a back injury, diagnosed as mild lumbosacral DJD and DDD, originated during his active service. The Board has determined that the criteria for establishing service connection are met.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disorder, finding that there was no evidence of a current disability related to military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's low back disorder, including his service-connected conditions and any potential exposure to environmental factors. The Veteran is entitled to a new VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of his diagnosed low back disorders.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for his lumbosacral spine disability and TDIU prior to July 1, 2015 was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for the period from September 20, 2005, to October 12, 2012, or since October 12, 2012.

The Board has granted the reopening of the claim for service connection for a bilateral knee disability, finding that new and material evidence supports this claim. Service connection is now established for the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine disability.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for his bilateral pes planus, back disability, and bilateral leg disability (including peripheral vascular disease, intrinsic/extrinsic strain to calves, and posterior tibial tendon dysfunction), finding that there was no evidence of aggravation during service.