Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2024

The Veteran's PTSD and associated mental health disabilities have been manifested by impairment with deficiencies in most areas including work, family life, judgment, thinking, and mood. The Board denied the claim for a disability rating greater than 70 percent for PTSD but granted entitlement to total disability based on individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Veteran's low back disability is granted as service-connected.,An earlier effective date of July 16, 2018, but not earlier, for the grant of service connection for migraine headaches is granted.

The Board has granted an earlier effective date of July 19, 2008 for the grant of extraschedular total disability based on individual unemployability and basic eligibility to Dependents' Educational Assistance based on permanent and total disability status.

The appeals for service connection and ratings related to various conditions have been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's appeal for lumbar radiculopathy, claimed as bilateral neuropathy of the lower limbs, has been dismissed. The appeals for left and right arm conditions are remanded.

The Board has granted effective dates of February 21, 2020 for the service connection of various conditions including left quad tendon tear, major depressive disorder, intervertebral disc syndrome with spinal stenosis, thoracolumbar spine, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, tinnitus, surgical scar, degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine status post C5-C7 ACDF with residual IVDS, radiculopathy of the right upper extremity, radiculopathy of the left upper extremity, and residual neck scar. The effective dates are based on the Veteran's timely filed claims within one year of his intent to file.

The Board dismissed the appellant's appeals for increased disability ratings and service connection due to his withdrawal of these claims prior to the decision being finalized.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors and the need for VA TERA examinations and opinions.

The Veteran's increased disability rating for the service-connected back disability is granted, with a rating of 20 percent. The rating for the foot disability remains at 10% from October 11, 2019 onwards.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and earlier effective dates have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeal. The claims are being remanded for further review.

The Veteran's bilateral pes planus disability has been granted an initial rating of 30 percent.,The Board is remanding the claims for service connection for left knee, right knee, lower back, and sleep apnea disabilities due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.

The Board denied an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for degenerative disc disease, L5 through S1, status post L5-S1 fusion, as it found that no formal or informal claim was filed prior to November 25, 2013.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete records, specifically missing service treatment records (STRs) from the Veteran's active-duty period. The VA is instructed to make reasonable efforts to obtain these records and notify the Veteran if they cannot be obtained.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for increased ratings in excess of 40 percent for IVDS with osteoarthritis of the lumbar spine and in excess of 10 percent for left leg radiculopathy, sciatic nerve.

The Veteran's claims for left and right knee instability, tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, and back condition were denied. The Board found no earlier effective date prior to May 21, 2019, for these conditions as the evidence did not show entitlement arose before that date.,For left and right knee strain with chondromalacia, a rating of 20 percent was granted.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for anxiety, a cervical spine condition, depression, a lumbar spine condition, and migraine headaches due to inadequate VA examinations and failure to consider the Veteran's lay testimony regarding in-service injuries.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including a total right shoulder replacement and bilateral inguinal hernias with associated scarring, have rendered him unemployable from September 18, 2009 to February 28, 2013. The Board has remanded the case for referral to the Director of Compensation Services for consideration of an extraschedular TDIU.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative arthritis with spondylosis Schmorl's node, lumbar spine with thoracic degenerative disc disease, as secondary to his service-connected right femur stress fracture.

The Veteran's lumbar spine condition is rated at 20 percent effective May 25, 2021. The appeal for an earlier effective date for RLE radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve was denied.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims of service connection for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, a back condition, and a left foot condition due to their finality.