Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for low back and right shoulder disabilities due to inadequate compliance with a previous remand directive.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for lower back condition, bilateral hip condition, and bilateral foot condition due to potential issues with medical opinions and need for further examination.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are remanded due to the need for additional examinations and development of records.

The Board has denied service connection for a low back disorder, finding that the Veteran's current condition is not related to his military service. The claim was reopened due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Board has determined that new examinations are needed to assess the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected right knee, lumbar spine, left shoulder, and left rib disabilities. The Veteran should be provided an opportunity to report for these examinations.

The Board has granted service connection for a cervical spine disability, diagnosed as arthritis. The cases of lumbar spine, right knee, left knee, diabetes mellitus type II, and amputation of the right great toe are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine has been dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a lower back disability, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service injury or disease related to his current condition and that the preponderance of the evidence did not support a relationship between his current disability and his military service.

The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service connection claims due to new evidence received since his last Statement of the Case. The Veteran is requested to provide information about any recent medical care providers and updated VA treatment records.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to incomplete medical records and the need for VA examinations.

The Board has determined that additional examinations and opinions are needed to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims for service connection for various disabilities, including a bilateral foot disorder, low back disorder, left ear hearing loss, and diabetes mellitus type II. The case is being remanded due to inadequate VA examination reports.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's claims for service connection for back and neck disabilities should be remanded due to a lack of records from the Social Security Administration.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's back disability, including his contention that he fell off a truck during service and developed DDD. The case will be returned for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, finding that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran's tinnitus had its onset during military service. The issue of service connection for a low back disability, to include as secondary to a left-leg disability, is remanded due to outstanding VA treatment records.

The Board has granted service connection and an initial rating of 30 percent for residuals of a left groin disability, as well as granting service connection for multiple conditions including bilateral shoulder disabilities, low back disability, left hip disability, right knee condition, and left ankle condition. The Veteran's PTSD is also rated at the maximum schedular level (70 percent) since May 22, 2018.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's low back disability needs further evaluation and remands the case for a VA examination to assess its current severity.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to the pending service connection for PTSD. The Board instructed the AOJ to take action on this claim, but it has not been completed yet.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and consideration of new VA treatment records.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for low back disability, bilateral knee disability, and left great toe disability due to inadequate VA examinations in June 2017. Further examination is needed to determine if any of these disabilities are related to service.

The Veteran's combined service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment, and the Board finds that TDIU is warranted.