Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2020

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability due to new and material evidence provided in March 2019. However, the claim remains denied as there is no medical evidence linking the current condition to service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to conflicting medical opinions and a need for additional evidence. The claims include low back, left shoulder, left hip, left knee, right hip, and right knee disabilities.

The Veteran's back disability is rated at 40 percent effective March 22, 2017. The appeal for a higher rating prior to that date and after it is denied.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence and a need for further examination to determine if the Veteran's back condition is related to his military service.

Your claims for service connection have been dismissed as you withdrew your appeal and opted into the modernized review system.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for GERD and a low back disability as secondary to his service-connected knee disabilities, finding that there is no evidence to support these claims.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for lumbar spine arthritis with spondylolisthesis, finding that it did not have its onset during active service and is not otherwise etiologically related to such service.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, sleep apnea, and a back disorder related to exposure at Camp Lejeune are being remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Board has remanded several issues for further development, including evaluations for various conditions and service connection claims. The Veteran's erectile dysfunction claim is denied as there is no evidence of a penile deformity. Other claims are also remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for anemia was denied as there is no evidence of a current disability, and the Board finds that the Veteran does not have left upper extremity radiculopathy.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, sleep apnea, allergic rhinitis, exercise-induced asthma, and back disorder were remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, right knee disorder, left knee disorder, and low back disorder have been granted. The rating assigned is 0% (no disability compensation).

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and examination, as the October 2016 VA examination is inadequate. The effective dates for service connection are denied.

The Veteran's application to reopen the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder has been granted. Service connection is also granted for this condition. Ratings have been assigned for left knee instability and painful motion, but the Veteran's right knee and inguinal hernia claims are remanded. The lumbar spine disability rating is also remanded due to new evidence of radicular symptoms.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for low back strain was denied. Separate ratings of up to 10 percent were granted for associated lumbar radiculopathy affecting the right and left lower extremities, effective April 11, 2018.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to his service-connected cervical and lumbar spine conditions. The Veteran was found not to be substantially gainfully employed prior to June 2015, when he had been rated as totally disabled on a schedular basis.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection due to inconsistencies in previous examinations and evidence not being fully considered.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is currently rated at 20 percent, which does not meet the criteria for a higher rating. The evidence shows that his range of motion has been within normal limits and he does not have ankylosis.

The Board has remanded two issues: the evaluation of right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome and service connection for a low back disorder. The Veteran must be provided with new examinations to assess his current disability levels, and a medical opinion is needed to determine if his low back condition is related to in-service injury.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his left knee and lumbar spine disabilities have been denied. The highest schedular rating of 30 percent has been assigned for the residuals of a medial meniscectomy with instability of the left knee, arthritis of the left knee with limitation of motion, and DDD of the lumbar spine.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability is granted. The Board also remanded the issues of service connection for right and left lower extremity conditions secondary to the lumbar spine disability.