Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2017

The Board found that the Veteran's current back disability is not causally or etiologically related to service, and arthritis did not manifest within one year of his discharge from service.

The Board is remanding the case to obtain additional medical records and to provide an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's lumbar spine disabilities. The Veteran's claim for service connection will be reconsidered based on the new evidence and opinions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss and a higher effective date for service connection of his low back disability. The claim to reopen for vision disability was also denied as no new and material evidence had been submitted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude her from engaging in substantially gainful employment, and therefore the criteria for a TDIU have not been met.

The Veteran's application for nonservice-connected pension benefits was denied as he did not meet the basic eligibility requirements due to lack of evidence showing qualifying income and net worth, and medical evidence did not show his non-service connected conditions were severe enough to prevent him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including a VA examination and obtaining treatment records. The Veteran's claim of an initial rating in excess of 40 percent for his service-connected back disability will be reconsidered after this additional development.

The Board found that the Veteran's right knee and lumbar spine disabilities were not incurred in or aggravated by service, and denied his claims for increased ratings.

The Veteran's claim for nonservice-connected pension benefits was denied prior to his parole date of May 18, 2012 due to incarceration following a conviction.

The Veteran's degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine was rated at 10 percent prior to November 14, 2016. From that date, it has been rated at 20 percent.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to inadequate examination reports and inextricably intertwined issues.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not preclude him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection of a lumbar spine disorder due to a finding of clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in their previous decision. The issue is now being addressed again as part of a separate Board decision.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection and TDIU prior to June 21, 2013 due to conflicting medical opinions regarding the Veteran's low back disability and bilateral knee disabilities. Additional development is required.

The Veteran's generalized arthralgias of the shoulders, elbows, knees, hands, thumbs, and lumbar spine have been rated at 40 percent since June 2006. The esophagitis with Mallory Weiss syndrome and hiatal hernia has not met criteria for a higher rating.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability, including associated radiculopathy of the upper extremities, is rated at 20 percent. The TDIU claim was granted.

The Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine has not resulted in a loss of forward flexion of 60 degrees or less, a combined range of motion of the thoracolumbar spine less than 120 degrees, lumbar radiculopathy, 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. The Veteran's left knee is shown to have arthritis causing a noncompensable decrease in range of motion due to pain; and while he complains of giving away of the knee, the weight of the evidence is against the finding that has lateral instability.

The Veteran's asbestosis and COPD are presumed to be related to service exposure. His low back disability, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction are found to be secondary to his service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased disability rating for service-connected lumbar strain has been withdrawn.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar disc disease rendered him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation prior to May 8, 2008.