Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2017

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including new VA examinations and consideration of the issues on appeal.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to address the Veteran's claims for an initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for a lumbar spine disease with disc protrusion and herniated disc. The Veteran will be afforded VA examinations to evaluate his current severity of bilateral hearing loss and to determine the nature and etiology of any lumbar spine disorder.

The Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea and chronic headache disability (migraine) were not incurred during service.,His lumbar spine disability was not shown to be related to active service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's joint pain is due to a medically unexplained chronic multisymptom illness, and thus service connection is granted.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder, low back, and left knee disabilities are not related to his active duty service.,There is no current evidence of a hip disability for VA compensation purposes.

The Board has ordered another examination and medical opinion due to the need for a credible opinion regarding the origin of the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, which is currently not available without an in-person examination.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine is not related to his active service and was not caused by or permanently worsened by his service-connected lumbar strain disability. Therefore, the claim for service connection is denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further evidentiary development, including scheduling a videoconference hearing.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for angioneurotic edema, bilateral hearing loss, a low back disability, right lower extremity sciatica, left lower extremity sciatica, and sinusitis. The reasons provided were that there was no evidence of these conditions in service or for many years thereafter, and they are not related to service.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for her service-connected lumbar strain is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a new VA examination.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral knee disability and low back disability are not service-connected as they did not have onset during active service or are otherwise etiologically linked to any incident of active service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disorder and acquired psychiatric disorder (other than posttraumatic stress disorder) are not related to his military service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied as the conditions are not related to his active duty service or any in-service exposure. The Board found that the peripheral vascular disease, including DVT, was caused by Factor V Leiden deficiency and not due to sodium dichromate exposure. Chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia were also not shown to be related to service.

The Veteran was granted an initial compensable rating (30%) for migraines prior to May 25, 2011.,An increased initial rating of 20% for lumbar strain has been granted from June 12, 2011 onwards.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is not manifested by a forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine greater than 30 degrees but less than 60 degrees, a combined range of motion less than 120 degrees, or muscle spasm or guarding severe enough to result in an abnormal gait or abnormal spinal contour such as scoliosis, reversed lordosis, or abnormal kyphosis. Therefore, the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation higher than 10 percent for a lumbar spine disability is denied.

The Veteran's claim for nonservice-connected pension was denied as there is no evidence of entitlement arising prior to July 2010, and the earliest date of impairment found by SSA was May 1, 2011.

The Board denied service connection for low back, right knee, left knee, right hip, and right ankle disabilities. The Veteran's TDIU claim was granted.

The Veteran's appeal is currently in remand status due to the need for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records and a new medical opinion from the June 2016 examiner.

The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to incomplete records and to obtain an opinion addressing whether the Veteran's current low back, right knee, and left foot disabilities are related to her service or any other relevant factors.