Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2018

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for lumbar spine, cervical spine, and bilateral hip disabilities due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to active service.

The Board found no evidence to support a link between the Veteran's low back disability and his military service, including in-service complaints of back pain. The Veteran's current condition is attributed to normal aging process rather than an injury or incident during service.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability and associated radiculopathies were evaluated under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine. The Board found that her symptoms did not meet or approximate criteria for a higher rating based on functional loss due to pain, as there was no objective evidence of pain on active range of motion testing or following repetitive motion testing.

The Board denied service connection and a temporary total rating for AAA based on convalescence. The Veteran's back disorder, PVD/PAD of the lower extremities, and AAA were not found to be related to his service or service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's low back disability, evaluated at 40 percent since December 12, 2015, meets the schedular criteria for a TDIU.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability did not meet criteria for separate ratings for radiculopathy of the bilateral lower extremities, as there was no evidence of nerve involvement or neurological manifestations.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to incomplete efforts by VA to obtain private treatment records related to the Veteran's back disability.

The Veteran's DDD of the thoracolumbar spine is currently rated at 40 percent, effective from August 11, 2016. The evidence does not show that he has ankylosis or incapacitating episodes with bed rest prescribed by a physician.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, finding that his lumbar spine disability did not warrant a rating in excess of 10 percent, and that there was insufficient evidence to support service connection or secondary service connection for sleep apnea or TMJ.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's neck and low back conditions are service-connected as they are related to her active duty service.,Service connection is granted for a neck disability (muscle spasms) and a low back disability (muscle spasms).

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his lumbar spine disabilities have been denied. The evidence does not support the assignment of any higher disability ratings.

The Veteran is entitled to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to December 7, 2012 due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected back disability and sciatica.

The Board finds that the Veteran's neck disorder is related to his in-service accident and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development to obtain adequate medical opinions detailing the nature and etiology of the appellant's disabilities.

The Veteran's lumbosacral spine disability is currently rated at 20 percent, effective from August 16, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating prior to this date.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied due to her failure to report for a VA examination scheduled in March 2017.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, status post lumbar fusion was denied as there is no evidence showing forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine to 30 degrees or less, or favorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine.,The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his degenerative joint disease of the right knee was denied as there is no evidence showing flexion limited to 30 degrees, or extension limited to 15 degrees; or ankylosis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's disabilities of the right upper extremity, left knee, and low back were not incurred during his honorable period of active service. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's pes planus and lumbar spine arthritis pre-existed service and were not aggravated by service, thus denying claims for service connection.