Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2024

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, frostbite of the left foot and toes, insomnia (claimed as sleep disorder), laceration of chin with resulting scar, left degenerative hip, right degenerative hip, chronic left knee disability, chronic right knee disability, and low back pain. The Board found no evidence of a causal relationship between these conditions and service.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings and service connection are being remanded due to procedural issues. The effective date of March 9, 2018, is granted for the award of service connection for radiculopathy of the right lower extremity.

The Veteran's appeal for acid reflux was dismissed. The Board remanded the issues of entitlement to service connection for a left shoulder condition, a lower back condition, and left lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy, secondary to the lower back condition.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to a lack of recent VA examinations and outstanding records. The Veteran's lumbar spine disability and right lower extremity radiculopathy are both being examined again, and his TDIU claim is also inextricably intertwined with these issues.

The Board has remanded the claims for further development and readjudication due to a failure to comply with an October 2019 Board decision regarding transfer of paper records into VBMS.

The Board denied service connection for a back disorder and remanded the issue of service connection for a sleep disorder, finding insufficient evidence to establish a relationship between these conditions and service.

The Board denied an increased rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, finding that his symptoms did not warrant a higher rating based on the current medical evidence.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his back disability with IVDS is denied, and the matter of TDIU is remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of increased ratings for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities due to inadequate development in prior VA examinations.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder is related to his active military service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the case for a new VA examination and opinion to determine if the Veteran's back disability is caused or aggravated by service or a service-connected disability, including his bilateral knee disabilities. The issue of secondary service connection remains on appeal.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the etiology of any back disabilities found or shown in the record during the pendency of the claim, including whether they are related to active service. The case is being remanded for further examination and opinion.

The Board has remanded the claims for increased ratings due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error related to the September 2022 and October 2022 VA examinations on the back and bilateral hips. The Veteran's disabilities include a back disability, lower extremity radiculopathy (bilateral), right hip disability, and left hip disability.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for left hip disability, right hip disability, cervical spine disability, and lumbar spine disability. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to her military service.,A reduction in the rating for migraine headaches from 10 percent to noncompensable was upheld as supported by recent medical examination.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for his right knee and lumbar spine disabilities have been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on limitation of motion or other criteria.

The Board denied the Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for his total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to August 20, 2021. The TDIU was granted as of August 20, 2021, and the Board found that the Veteran had been unable to secure and maintain gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities since November 2020.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for low back disorder and radiculopathy of the lower extremities are remanded due to conflicting range of motion findings and inconsistent diagnoses.

The Board has granted an effective date of December 13, 2013 for the award of service connection for right lower extremity radiculopathy. The Veteran's low back disorder is still under appeal and requires further review to determine appropriate ratings and effective dates.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for spinal stenosis, scoliosis, thoracolumbar spine with lumbar disc protrusion was granted with an effective date of August 31, 2021.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple knee and ankle conditions due to the appellant's withdrawal of the appeal prior to a decision being made.