Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2017

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability was not incurred or aggravated in service and denied her claim.

The Veteran's malaria claim is denied. The Board finds reasonable doubt in the bilateral tinea pedis (jungle rot) claim and grants service connection. Service connection for residuals of basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer, including as the result of exposure to Agent Orange, is granted. Service connection for actinic keratosis and sebaceous cysts, including as the result of exposure to Agent Orange, is denied. The Veteran's left knee degenerative joint disease, status post arthroscopic surgery, and lumbar spine condition are found to be related to service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for DDD with spinal stenosis and DJD of the left ankle were denied. The initial rating for DDD with spinal stenosis was granted, but at a lower percentage than requested (10% prior to June 28, 2010; 40% as of June 28, 2010). The claim for DJD of the left ankle was also denied.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional medical evidence and a new VA examination.

The Board has ordered a remand to address the Veteran's lumbar spine disability and arthritis, including determining their etiology and service connection.

The Board finds that the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of EDS with multiple joint involvement, including left ankle instability, right and left hip bursitis, right and left knee retropatellar pain syndrome, low back strain, and left ankle tender scar, became part of her pending February 17, 2010 increased rating claim. The effective date for the award is set at June 10, 2010.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's cervical spine, left elbow, right elbow, and right knee disabilities are related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the Veteran's right knee and lumbar spine disabilities. The claims will be readjudicated after obtaining supplemental opinions from the examiner who conducted the May 2010 examination.

The Board denied service connection for left shoulder strain with AC joint arthritis, bilateral elbow chronic strains with early degenerative changes, chronic cervical spine strain with degenerative disc disease, and chronic left hand strain. The Veteran's sleep apnea was also not granted as service connected.

The Board has remanded the case for a VA medical opinion to address whether the Veteran's current back disability is related to service, including an examination of the 1976 post-service injury and whether it was aggravated by service.

The Veteran's low back disorder, including Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) and Status Post hemilaminectomy, was not found to be related to service or service-connected disabilities. The TDIU claim is granted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including left shoulder disability, intervertebral disc syndrome with degenerative disc disease L5-S1, urinary frequency, peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities, and tinnitus, do not prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment. The Board finds that he is capable of full-time employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for a more thorough VA examination regarding his lumbar spine disability, including opinions on whether it was caused by or aggravated by service-connected shoulder disabilities.

The Board found that the Veteran's current back and neck disabilities were not incurred or aggravated by service, but granted service connection for these conditions based on direct evidence of their existence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for low back and neck disabilities, as well as hypertension, were denied. The Board found no evidence of these conditions during or within one year after service separation. Service connection was also not granted for PTSD or CAD due to lack of a nexus between the current conditions and service. For hypertension, the Veteran's condition did not have its onset in service, nor was it shown to be related to diabetes or PTSD. The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for coronary artery disease were denied as well.

The Board found that there is no probative evidence linking a current low back disability to service, and thus denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back disability. The issues of entitlement to service connection for left ear hearing loss and an initial compensable rating for right ear hearing loss are addressed in the REMAND portion of the decision.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was evaluated at 10 percent prior to April 25, 2012 and at 40 percent thereafter. The Board found the evidence did not meet criteria for higher evaluations.

The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability and left knee disabilities, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on limitation of motion or incapacitating episodes. The temporary total disability rating for convalescence was also denied.

The Veteran has withdrawn all appeals regarding the issues of entitlement to service connection for an upper back condition, chest pain, and hypertension.

The Board has reopened the claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability to include PTSD, right arm laceration, left knee disability, right knee disability, lumbar spine disability and bilateral foot disability. The new evidence submitted since the final decisions raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating these claims.