Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2017

The Veteran's obstructive sleep apnea is granted as secondary to his service-connected major depressive disorder. His major depressive disorder is granted a 100% rating, and his degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine remains at 50%. The case is remanded for further development regarding the lower back condition.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn by his representative, and thus the case is dismissed.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings, finding no new and material evidence to reopen his claim of vision problems. The Veteran's low back strain with lumbar disc degeneration/degenerative arthritis was not found to meet criteria for a higher rating prior to November 18, 2015, but did meet criteria thereafter. His bilateral hearing loss met the criteria for a 20% rating from September 25, 2015 to March 7, 2016, and was not found to warrant a higher rating.

The Board denied the Veteran's application to reopen his claim of service connection for a low back condition, finding that there was no new and material evidence presented.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for lumbar degenerative disc disease, osteopenia and spondylosis was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable schedular criteria. For right lower extremity radiculopathy and left lower extremity radiculopathy, the Veteran's claim of entitlement to earlier effective dates were also denied as there is no factual basis for an earlier effective date.

The Veteran's TBI and bilateral visual disability claims are denied. His bilateral hearing loss and low back disabilities are granted, but his knee disabilities remain not established.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for service-connected residuals of a low back disability was denied as the evidence did not show that his condition met or approximated the criteria for a rating in excess of 20 percent prior to April 4, 2012 and in excess of 40 percent thereafter.

The Veteran's claims for thoracic and lumbar spine disabilities were denied. The Veteran was granted higher initial ratings of 20% for his left shoulder and right shoulder disabilities, but the claim for a higher rating for cervical degenerative disc disease was denied. The Veteran's TDIU claim was also denied.

The Board found that the Veteran's current lumbar spine, neck, and TMJ disorders are not related to service, including the in-service motor vehicle accident. The evidence did not support a finding of continuity of symptomatology or a nexus between the conditions and service.

The Veteran's low back disability is rated at 40 percent from July 1, 2009 to March 14, 2013. The claim for service connection of a left eye disability was denied as there is no current diagnosis of glaucoma or other left eye disability. The Veteran meets the schedular requirements for consideration of TDIU due to her service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran seeks service connection for various disabilities, including cervical and lumbar spine conditions and radiculopathy of the lower extremities. The Board has determined that an effective date prior to August 23, 2011 is not warranted for these claims.,The Veteran also sought earlier effective dates for his service-connected disabilities. These requests were denied as well.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a low back disability that is etiologically related to a period of qualifying service, and therefore denies his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment, warranting a grant of TDIU.

The Board found that the Veteran's claimed conditions are not related to service and denied all claims for service connection.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating in any of the issues.

The Board has granted service connection for a low back disability with radiculopathy and denied service connection for a neck disability. Service connection was also denied for a skin disorder and left eye disability due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Veteran's service-connected low back disability and PTSD have rendered him unemployable for the period from June 21, 2009 to November 8, 2011. The Board has granted a TDIU on an extraschedular basis during this period.

The Veteran's service-connected low back pain and right lower extremity radiculopathy, including the side effects of his medications, prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to February 28, 2012. The Board granted a TDIU on an extraschedular basis.