Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded several service connection claims due to insufficient evidence or procedural issues.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral spine disability and rheumatoid arthritis did not prevent him from obtaining or retaining substantially gainful employment prior to February 10, 2010.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for conditions affecting the middle finger of the left hand, right wrist, left foot, and lumbar spine due to a lack of in-service medical records. The Veteran attributes these conditions to a motor vehicle accident during service.

The Board denied service connection for low back strain, cervical spine degenerative disc disease, left knee bursitis, acanthosis nigricans and dermatofibroma with seborrheic keratoses. The claim of CUE in the denial of service connection for sinusitis and epididymitis was dismissed without prejudice to refiling.,The Board found that there is no evidence linking any of these conditions to the Veteran's active duty service.

The Veteran is granted a TDIU rating due to service-connected disabilities, with the effective date being throughout the appeal period.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disability and did not reopen the previously denied claims for right hip, left knee, and right knee disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for increased rating and service connection are remanded due to the need for a new VA examination.

The Board denied service connection for back disability and a compensable rating for right ankle disability, finding that the preponderance of evidence did not support these claims.

The Veteran's claim for an effective date earlier than August 3, 2009 for service connection of his back disability is denied. The case is remanded to obtain a VA examination and consider the Veteran's current level of disability.

The Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 20 percent for his service-connected degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine with intervertebral disc syndrome on or after July 31, 2018, is denied. The evidence does not meet the criteria for a higher rating based on range of motion and neurological findings.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have been assigned an effective date of January 1, 2017, which is the day after his separation from active duty.,The Veteran has filed a claim for earlier effective dates for various service-connected conditions. The Board finds that these claims are denied as the earliest possible effective date allowed by law is January 1, 2017.

The Veteran's left hip disorder is granted service connection and effective September 7, 2006.,Service connection for the lower back disability was granted in August 2016 with an effective date of September 7, 2006. The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date is denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's low back disability is related to his active service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the cases of cervical degenerative disc disease, bilateral hearing loss, and sleep disability to allow for further development and consideration.

The Veteran's tinnitus was granted service connection and is rated at the maximum available rating of 10%.,For his lumbosacral strain, a 20% evaluation is granted effective December 5, 2017.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's back disability, finding that it is more likely than not that his current condition originated from injuries sustained during active duty.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability, left leg radiculopathy, COPD, and PAD has been granted.,New evidence received since the last final denial of these claims raises reasonable possibility of substantiating them.

Service connection is denied for lower back disorder, right ear hearing loss, and gastrointestinal disorder.,A higher initial disability rating of left ear hearing loss from January 25, 2016, and a higher rating for PTSD are also denied.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a back disability, psychiatric disorder (to include as secondary to a back disability), and hemorrhoids. The Veteran's claim for prostate cancer and sleep disorder are also remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a low back condition, finding that there was no in-service injury or disease and insufficient evidence to establish continuity of symptomatology. The Board also found that the Veteran did not provide competent medical evidence establishing a connection between his current disability and service.