Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2020

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right ankle disorder, left ankle disorder, right knee disorder, left knee disorder, and lumbar spine disorder as they are not shown to be related to his active duty service.

The Board has found pre-decisional errors in the denial of service connection for various conditions and has ordered remand to obtain necessary examinations and opinions.

The Veteran's thoracolumbar spine degenerative arthritis is being remanded for a VA medical addendum opinion to determine if it is at least as likely as not caused by or aggravated by his service-connected left knee disability.

The Board denied the Veteran's requests for revision of two final rating decisions that denied service connection for a back disorder and visual impairment. The appeals were based on claims alleging CUE, but the Board found no evidence of error in the original decisions.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's lumbar spine condition and his service connection claims. Specifically, they need to verify the dates of any periods of Active Duty for Training (ACDUTRA) and Inactive Duty for Training (INACDUTRA).

The Board has granted service connection for left hip degenerative joint disease, right hip degenerative joint disease, and lumbar spine degenerative disc disease and spondylosis as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected knee conditions.,These decisions are based on medical opinions that the Veteran's current hip and back conditions are at least as likely as not caused or aggravated by his service-connected knee disabilities.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's previously denied claims for service connection for left knee disability, lumbosacral spine osteoarthritis, and left shoulder osteoarthritis. The claim for obstructive sleep apnea secondary to PTSD is remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Board denied service connection for a back condition, finding that the Veteran's current low back disorder is not causally or etiologically due to his military service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for lower extremity disorders due to insufficient evidence. The current ratings for PTSD and degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine remain unchanged.

The Veteran's disability ratings for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy of both lower extremities have been granted. The lumbar spine is rated at 10 percent, while the right and left lower extremity radiculopathies are each rated at 10 percent.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating higher than 10 percent for her lower back disability is remanded due to the need for a new examination and consideration of the adequacy of the August 2018 VA examination.

The Veteran's service connection claims for migraines, tremors (initially claimed as stroke residuals), sinusitis, respiratory disability, lumbar spine disability, bilateral knee disability, and right hip disability are all remanded due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between these conditions and her military service.,Specifically, the VA examiner's opinions on the causes of migraines and tremors were inadequate. The examiner did not address the Veteran’s lay statements about symptoms during and since active duty.

The Board has ordered additional development for the Veteran's claims due to errors in prior determinations and inadequate medical opinions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back condition and migraines, finding that there was no direct or secondary service connection based on the evidence of record.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including scheduling a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's back condition is related to his service-connected lateral femoral cutaneous neuropathy or active duty service.

The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disorder, diagnosed as degenerative disc disease (degenerative disc disease) of the lumbar spine. The decision is based on direct service connection due to an in-service low back strain and current evidence showing that the condition was more likely than not incurred during service.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for migraine and tension headaches was granted, but the maximum schedular disability rating of 50 percent is still not met prior to September 13, 2017.,Service connection for degenerative disc disease of C4-C7 with multilevel spinal and neuroforaminal stenosis secondary to traumatic brain injury remains remanded.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, shoulder disability, low back disability, and knee disability due to additional development being required.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for low back, bilateral knee, and bilateral ankle conditions, as well as radiculopathy of the lower extremities. The claims are being remanded due to a lack of VA examination.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for intervertebral disc disorder of the lumbar region with myelopathy and mild fecal incontinence, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, and radiculopathy of the left lower extremity were granted. The effective dates are January 16, 1971, June 26, 2008 for each respective condition.