Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's lower back condition, sinusitis, and acquired psychiatric disorder.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected DDD of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy of the left lower extremity are being remanded due to additional development needed.

The Board has remanded the cases due to an inadequate medical examination, requiring a new opinion on whether the Veteran's left ankle and lumbar spine disabilities are proximately due or aggravated by his service-connected knee disability.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a low back disability, left broken collarbone, and higher ratings for right knee disability and depressive disorder. The Veteran's claim to reopen service connection for a left knee disability is also being remanded.

The Board has dismissed all the appeals for increased ratings as the Veteran withdrew his appeals prior to a decision being made.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his affective disorder (acquired psychiatric disorder) was denied. The claim for TDIU based on service-connected disabilities is granted, but the decision does not specify an effective date.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine, cervical spine, and bilateral knee disabilities due to inadequate VA examinations. The Veteran should be provided with new examinations to determine the etiology of these conditions.

The Board has determined that there are medical records pertinent to this appeal which have not been associated with the Veteran’s claims file. The matter is REMANDED for obtaining outstanding medical records from September 2017 to the present.

The Veteran's sleep apnea is granted as service-connected.,The Veteran’s left little finger disability rating has been restored to 10 percent effective February 7, 2015.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of entitlement to increased ratings for his back disability and PTSD due to outstanding VA treatment records and a need for additional examinations.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for lumbar sprain with residual myofascial pain and radiculopathy, right thigh due to inadequate examinations. The hearing examiner did not properly assess range of motion during flare-ups or consider the use of TENS units and narcotic pain medication. For the hearing loss claim, the Board has remanded as it is unclear if the Veteran's right ear hearing acuity meets VA standards for a disability.

The Veteran's sleep apnea is granted as secondary to his service-connected psychiatric disorder and medications. A temporary total rating for convalescence following back surgery is granted, with a 40% rating for the back disability from October 1, 2011 to January 17, 2016. The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for the back disability after January 18, 2016 is denied. His acquired psychiatric disorder does not meet criteria for a TDIU. A total disability rating for individual unemployability (TDIU) is granted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for TDIU, finding that his service-connected disabilities did not render him unemployable during the one-year period prior to filing the TDIU application.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for lumbosacral disorder and right-sided sciatica due to insufficient evidence of a nexus between these conditions and military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for low back pain was reopened and granted. Service connection for right knee joint osteoarthritis is remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a lumbar spine disability, scar, status post varicocelectomy, and tinnitus due to additional development being necessary.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for sickle cell trait, left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and back disorder due to new evidence or clarification of existing evidence.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability, right lower extremity radiculopathy, right shoulder impingement syndrome, left shoulder impingement syndrome, right elbow degenerative joint disease, right knee degenerative joint disease, and left knee degenerative joint disease have been granted initial disability ratings. The GERD has also been granted a higher initial disability rating.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and need for further examination of the Veteran's lumbar strain disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions and further development is needed for both back and hip disabilities.