Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim of service connection for a back disability due to incomplete records and need for further medical examination.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder, lumbar spine, and right knee disorders are not related to service.,The Veteran's left foot disorder is remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for low back disability, foot disability (bilateral plantar fasciitis), and left hand disability (claimed as loss of motor skills) due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology. The Veteran must be provided with a VA examination to address his service connection claims.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis and left patellofemoral pain syndrome with strain, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between these conditions and his military service.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals regarding service connection for heart palpitations, dizziness, fatigue/irritability, bilateral knee disability, upper back disability, and tailbone disability due to a withdrawal of his appeal. The claims were not supported by evidence linking these conditions to active duty service.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for right calf numbness, low back pain, and right hip pain as secondary to service-connected bilateral pes planus and/or left foot scar due to insufficient evidence in the record.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, but granted service connection for tinnitus. The case is remanded to obtain the Veteran's military personnel records and determine the etiology of his thoracolumbar degenerative disc disease.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The AOJ must obtain her complete service personnel records and service treatment records, as well as military dependent treatment records from multiple military facilities.

The Board has granted service connection for low back, left knee, left hip, left foot, and left ankle conditions as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right knee disability.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for additional medical records.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to the need for an opinion on the combined effect of her service-connected disabilities on her employability.

The Board has decided that the reduction of the Veteran's disability rating for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine from 40 percent to 10 percent, effective June 1, 2017 was not proper and restored a 40 percent rating. The issue of entitlement to a rating in excess of 40 percent for a low back disability is remanded.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral knee disability, secondary to his service-connected degenerative joint disease of the thoracolumbar spine.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 40 percent for the Veteran's lumbar degenerative disc disease with bulging intervertebral disc, finding that the disability did not more nearly approximate unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes of intervertebral disc syndrome.

The Board has remanded several issues related to incomplete paralysis of the femoral nerve, including initial ratings and effective dates. The Veteran's service connection for spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine is not at issue.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back condition and bilateral pes planus with left foot fracture due to the need for VA examinations to determine the etiology of his disabilities, as well as the need for additional medical records.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back disability, finding that her current condition is not related to her active duty service or any service-connected conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar and thoracic spine low back pain, as well as her cervical spine condition, did not manifest during service or for many years thereafter, are not otherwise causally related to service, and were neither proximately due to nor aggravated beyond their natural progression by a service-connected disability. As such, these conditions have not been established as being related to service.

The Board has ordered additional development to obtain VA treatment records and authorized medical records from the Veteran's providers. The case will be returned for further action.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine due to new and material evidence submitted since the last final denial. The case is remanded for further examination and opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's condition.