Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2024

The Veteran's request for an extension of the delimiting date for his Post-9/11 GI Bill educational assistance benefits beyond December 1, 2018 is granted due to medical infeasibility caused by various disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for a new VA medical opinion to determine if his back disorder, including chronic pain, was caused or aggravated by service-connected cervical spine disability.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for headaches, a left hip disability, a back disability, a heart disability, a left knee disability, and a right knee disability. The evidence does not support a finding of current disabilities or a link to military service.

The Board denied service connection for a bilateral knee disability, a bilateral hip disability, and a lumbar spine disability. The Veteran's bilateral knee disability is presumed to have existed prior to service and was not aggravated during service.,Service connection for the Veteran’s bilateral hip disability and lumbar spine disability were also denied as they did not manifest within one year of discharge from service or are not otherwise related to service.

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and a back condition. The TDIU claim is being remanded to assign appropriate disability ratings and effective dates.

The Board found that the reduction of the Veteran's lumbar spine disability rating from 20% to 10% was improper and restored the previous 20% rating effective April 1, 2021.

The Veteran's hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, and obstructive sleep apnea were not incurred during active duty or within one year of separation from active duty. The lumbar spine disorder was not diagnosed during a period of qualifying service.,Service connection for these conditions is denied as there is no evidence of in-service injury or disease.

The Board dismissed the Veteran's claim for service connection for discogenic right sciatic radicular pain (partial paralysis right sciatic) as it was granted in a prior rating decision. Service connection was established for other conditions, including chronic sinusitis, PTSD, and various musculoskeletal issues, all presumed related to Southwest Asia service.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for cervical spine, depression, and lumbar spine conditions secondary to left heel or achilles tendon condition due to an error in satisfying a regulatory duty with regard to these issues.

For the entire period on appeal, the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability is rated at 70 percent.,For the entire period on appeal, the Veteran's lumbosacral strain is rated at 50 percent.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back condition, migraine condition, and neck condition as secondary to a back condition due to insufficient evidence during the appeal period.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for low back pain was dismissed due to the failure to timely file a VA Form 10182 Decision Review Request.,Service connection for tinnitus was denied as there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure or continuity of symptomatology since separation from active duty.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been added to the record, warranting readjudication of the claims for service connection for right knee strain, left knee strain, and a low back condition. The claims are being remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and medical opinions.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected chronic lumbar strain was denied. However, he was granted service connection for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy secondary to his service-connected lumbar strain and assigned a 10 percent disability rating for each leg.

The Veteran's Crohn's disease and lumbar strain are rated at 40 percent each, but the Board found no evidence of marked interference with absorption or nutrition to warrant a higher rating. The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as he is able to secure and follow substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's psychiatric condition, lumbosacral strain, and left ankle disability have been rated as per the criteria since July 31, 2019. The effective dates for SMC based on housebound status and DEA are also set to this date.

The Board has remanded the evaluations for Degenerative Joint Disease of the Cervical Spine and Lumbar Spine due to inadequate examination findings.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error, and will need to provide an adequate medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's lumbar spine disability is caused or aggravated by his service-connected left knee degenerative joint disease.

The Veteran's erectile dysfunction is caused by his service-connected lumbar spine condition, and the claim for service connection for this secondary disability has been granted.

The Veteran's neck disabilities, including degenerative joint disease with cervical spondylosis, cervical radiculopathy, degenerative disc disease, myofascial pain syndrome, and chronic pain syndrome, are granted as service-connected.,The Veteran's headache disability is remanded for further examination to determine its etiology.,The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disabilities, including unspecified depressive disorder and other specified anxiety disorder, are remanded for further evaluation.