Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has granted service connection for a low back disability and left leg numbness/radiating pain as secondary to the back disability. However, the right foot disability remains in dispute due to lack of diagnosed condition.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations. The issues include obstructive sleep apnea, low back disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, left hip disability, right hip disability, right knee disability, tinnitus, and neck disability.

The Veteran's lumbar spine injury is rated at 40 percent effective October 25, 2006. The Board also granted entitlement to Total Disability Rating due to Individual Unemployability (TDIU) based on the combined disability rating of 70 percent.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain is granted service connection, but his left and right knee strains and psychiatric disability to include PTSD and MDD are denied. The case for seizures is remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions due to incomplete medical records and inadequate opinions.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have not rendered him unemployable or unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's appeals for low back, upper back, heel disorder, ear injury, head injury, and cold injury of the feet were dismissed as he withdrew his appeal.,A claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder was reopened due to new evidence.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for further development and examination due to insufficient opinions regarding the etiology of his claimed conditions.

The Board denied service connection for a cervical spine disability, to include damaged vertebrae and degenerative disc disease (DDD), as there was no credible evidence linking the current condition to service. The Veteran's TDIU claim prior to September 10, 2009, was also denied due to his ability to secure substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for low back disability, left leg disability, headaches, and hypertension due to insufficient medical evidence in the record. The Veteran is required to provide a VA examination to address his service connection claims.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to missing service treatment records and inadequate VA examination. The issues of service connection for a lumbar spine disorder and its secondary condition, a neurologic abnormality of the left lower extremity (LLE), are now pending.

The Board has granted a 10 percent initial rating for the Veteran's service-connected low back sprain prior to January 10, 2017. The appeal is denied for any higher ratings or additional separate compensable ratings.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was previously rated at 20 percent prior to November 7, 2018 and has been reduced to 40 percent since then.,The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 40 percent for his lumbar spine disability from November 7, 2018.

The Board has granted the appellant's claims for service connection for anemia, rheumatoid arthritis, thoracolumbar spine disability, cervical spine disability, bilateral knee disability, left ankle disability, and right foot disability as they are all related to his service-connected rheumatoid arthritis.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations of her lumbar spine, right knee, and left knee osteoarthritis are being remanded due to the need for additional supporting evidence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection of a thoracic spine disability and an evaluation in excess of 10 percent disabling for her chronic lumbosacral strain, finding that there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between these conditions and active service.

The Veteran's increased ratings for PTSD and degenerative arthritis, thoracolumbar spine, with intervertebral disc syndrome were denied. The Veteran was not granted initial evaluations in excess of 10 percent for his radiculopathy conditions.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including depression. The claim for service connection for a low back disability is granted.

The Veteran's low back disability, pseudofolliculitis barbae, and left wrist disability are granted as service connected.,The Veteran's right wrist disability is granted as service connected.,The Veteran's traumatic brain injury (TBI) is granted as service connected.,The Veteran's sleep apnea is granted as service connected.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss and GERD was denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for left knee disability, thoracolumbar spine disorder, cervical spine disorder, and headaches as secondary to service-connected right and left knee disabilities due to the need for additional examinations and medical opinions.