Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the claims for low back disability, sleep apnea, and hypertension due to inadequate VA examinations. The Veteran is required to undergo new VA examinations to address the issues of service connection.

The Board has determined that additional VA medical opinions are necessary to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete or inaccurate factual premises in previous VA examination reports.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for depression has been reopened, and the Board finds new and material evidence to support reopening. The claims for service connection for a back disorder and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD and depression) are remanded due to the submission of new medical evidence.

The Board has remanded several issues, including the reopening of a claim for service connection for back and skin disabilities. The appellant's claims are pending due to incomplete records and need further examination.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for service connection of major depressive disorder and muscle spasms and degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, finding that entitlement to these conditions did not arise until after the Veteran's separation from his second period of active duty.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his service-connected conditions do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has remanded the claims due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's conditions and their relationship to service. The Veteran is not entitled to service connection for sleep apnea, back disability, bilateral foot fungus, or toenail fungus.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current disability of the thoracolumbar spine or left leg, and therefore cannot establish service connection for these conditions. The cervical spine condition is remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding its etiology.

The Board denied service connection for a back disability, concluding that the evidence did not support a finding of in-service injury or disease and that the current condition was less likely related to service.

The Veteran's osteoarthritis of the lumbosacral spine, right total knee replacement, left total hip replacement, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities, PTSD, and TDIU are all granted.,The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have been found to be sufficiently severe to produce unemployability.

The Veteran's claims for higher disability ratings for lumbosacral strain and ulcerative colitis have been remanded due to the need to determine whether other gastrointestinal disorders are part of his service-connected ulcerative colitis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar disc disease, right hip disability, and left hip disability are etiologically related to his service. As a result, the claims for these conditions have been granted.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine was granted, with a rating of 100% effective from the date of the decision.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disorder, finding that the preponderance of evidence does not show that the current condition began during or is related to active military service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus. Service connection is remanded for the Veteran's back condition.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including a lower back disability and bronchial asthma, prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment for the period between June 11, 2002, and December 19, 2006. The Board granted entitlement to TDIU on an extraschedular basis.

The Veteran's claim for higher initial ratings for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity is denied. The current ratings are considered appropriate based on the evidence.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for increased ratings due to outstanding VA and private treatment records, as well as the need for additional examinations.

The Board has denied service connection for a neck condition, back condition, and acquired psychiatric disorder as the evidence does not support that these conditions began during or are otherwise related to active service.

The previously denied claim for service connection for spinal meningitis is reopened on the basis of new and material evidence. The appeal is granted to this extent.