Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2016

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate VA examination for cervical spine disability and a need to issue an SOC regarding the claim of higher rating for lumbar spine condition.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed for the claims of higher ratings for his knee and foreleg conditions. The Board found in favor of service connection for a low back disability, with the evidence being at least in equipoise as to whether it is related to service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and providing the Veteran with examinations to assess his lumbar spine and hemorrhoid disabilities, as well as determining the nature and etiology of any cervical spine disability. The claims will be readjudicated after these actions.

The Board has granted service connection for DDD of the lumbar spine and PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms began during service and have continued since then. The evidence is at least in equipoise on whether these conditions were incurred in service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions are not service-connected as they are not shown to be related to his active duty service.

The Veteran's lumbosacral spine disability is currently rated at 40 percent disabling, effective October 1, 2005. The RO has granted a higher rating for the service-connected condition.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left knee sprain, right knee sprain, and low back strain are related to service. The claims for these disabilities have been granted.

The Veteran's back disability is related to his active service and the Board finds in favor of granting service connection for a back disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's back disability began in active service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has determined that there is no clear and unmistakable error in the effective date assignments for service connection, but found that there was clear and unmistakable error in the effective date assignment for the award of service connection for residual scars status post skin graft of the right leg. The Veteran's claims for increased ratings on an extra-schedular basis are denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed back, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and right arm disabilities are not related to his active service. The evidence does not establish a direct relationship between these conditions and his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back disability, erectile dysfunction as secondary to diabetes mellitus type II, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper extremities as secondary to diabetes mellitus type II.

The Veteran has been diagnosed with arthritis of the lumbar spine and has experienced continuous symptoms since service separation. The Board finds that these symptoms are etiologically related to active service, granting service connection for arthritis of the lumbar spine.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and requests for additional development. The Veteran's claim of service connection for a low back disability is pending.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability, finding that his current condition is etiologically related to his active service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability with radiculopathy did not have its onset in service, manifest within one year of discharge from service, and is not shown by the competent and probative evidence to be the result of disease or injury incurred during the Veteran's military service.

The Board granted a rating of 20 percent for the Veteran's low back disability, effective from March 19, 2013. The decision also found that TDIU was warranted prior to May 5, 2014.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating of his service-connected back condition was granted, with the disability rated at 50 percent.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for right and left knee chondromalacia, as well as chronic lumbar pain with myofascial muscle strain, were granted. The effective date is October 30, 2012.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his lumbar spine disability is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his condition.