Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2021

The Board has decided to remand the claim of service connection for low back pain due to inadequate medical opinion and need for further examination.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity are remanded for further evaluation due to worsening symptoms.

The Board denied the claim for TDIU prior to May 25, 2017 due to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities not precluding substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar and cervical spine disabilities have been reopened, but the Board has decided to remand these issues back to the RO for further consideration on their merits.

The Board denied service connection for back and neck disabilities, finding no evidence of such conditions during active duty or chronic symptoms with onset in service.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine, left knee, and left leg disabilities due to missing service treatment records. The Veteran contends that he injured his knees and legs while playing basketball during service.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for his service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine has been dismissed as he withdrew his appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for memory loss disorder and back disorder due to inadequate rationale in previous decisions, lack of VA examinations addressing concerns raised by a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR), and failure to provide adequate notice of scheduled VA examinations.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining a retrospective medical opinion and addressing whether referral for extraschedular consideration is warranted based on the Veteran's use of a cane and brace.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings of his service-connected lumbar spine disability and radiculopathy, left lower extremity are being remanded due to the need for additional medical examination. The TDIU claim is also deferred until further notice.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty to assist error and failure to comply with prior remands. The examiner must address whether service-connected disabilities caused obesity, which then led to type 2 diabetes mellitus and death.

The Veteran's arthritis of the lumbar spine is granted a 40 percent rating effective March 12, 2010. The TDIU claim is remanded.

The Board denied service connection for lumbar-spine, cervical-spine, and left-knee disorders due to a lack of evidence showing these conditions were incurred during active service.

The Veteran's PTSD due to military sexual trauma is rated at 70 percent, effective from the date of the decision.,Service connection for low back disability (lumbar degenerative joint disease) is granted as secondary to service-connected degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine.

The Veteran's right upper extremity radiculopathy associated with his neck condition is now rated at 70 percent, effective June 26, 2019.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability increased in severity to manifest right lower extremity radiculopathy, allowing for a separate evaluation starting from February 5, 2007.

The Veteran's service-connected low back condition and bilateral sciatic nerve radiculopathy have been granted separate evaluations of 20 percent each, effective from the date of the decision. The initial rating for chronic mechanical low back syndrome remains at 10 percent.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his lumbosacral spondylosis with degenerative disc disease and radiculopathy of the bilateral lower extremities, have prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation since May 4, 2015.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for back and left knee disabilities have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeal.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at 10 percent, the lowest available rating. The Board finds that his symptoms do not warrant a higher rating as they are limited to pain and stiffness without ankylosis or other significant functional impairment.