Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2025

The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to a concurrent pending Higher-Level Review request.

The appeal of the January 2024 proposal to reduce the disability rating from 30 percent disabling to 10 percent for coronary artery disease is dismissed. The Board also denied service connection for various conditions, including chronic fatigue syndrome and posttraumatic stress disorder with traumatic brain injury residuals.

The Board granted an effective date of August 25, 2021, for the award of service connection for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis to include Intervertebral disc syndrome (IDVS), radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, and radiculopathy of the left lower extremity.

The Board granted service connection for hypertension, PTSD, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities effective March 29, 2022. The claim for a back condition was remanded for further development.

The Board denied service connection for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, left knee osteoarthritis, and right knee osteoarthritis with meniscal tear as there was no evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's active military service.

The Board dismissed the claims for service connection for a back condition and neck condition, and denied the claim for service connection for a right shoulder condition.

The Board remands the claim for a cervical spine disability to obtain an adequate opinion on its nature and etiology.

The Board remands the issues of an earlier effective date and higher initial rating for lumbar spine disability to correct duty to assist errors.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for bilateral knee and low back disabilities on a secondary basis due to an inadequate VA examination.

The Board granted service connection for low back spinal stenosis, resolving reasonable doubt in the veteran's favor.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, denied increased ratings for the right foot stress fracture and scars, restored a 40% rating for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis, and denied earlier effective dates for TDIU and DEA. The Board remanded claims for service connection for a gastrointestinal disability and increased evaluations for the low back and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.

The Board dismissed the appeal for higher disability evaluations for multiple conditions due to a prohibited concurrent election under the modernized review system.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for bilateral flat foot, left and right foot hallux valgus, and a lumbar spine disorder due to insufficient VA medical opinions.

The Board denied service connection for anxiety, depression, bilateral hearing loss disability, tinnitus, low back disorder, bilateral foot condition, and right shoulder condition as the evidence did not support a finding that any of these conditions were related to the Veteran's military service.

The Board granted service connection for allergic rhinitis and sleep apnea, to include as secondary to PTSD. The claim for a low back disability was denied, and the claims for GERD were remanded.

The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including cervical spine, back, shoulder, elbow, wrist, vertigo, and hypothyroidism, as there was no evidence of an in-service event, injury, illness, or disease related to these disabilities. The claim for a sleep apnea disability was also denied due to the lack of a current diagnosis.

The Board remands the claims for a low back disability, left and right lower extremity disabilities, and an acquired psychiatric disorder to obtain additional medical evidence.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and remanded the claims for a lumbar spine disorder, bilateral lumbar radiculopathy, and bilateral shin splints.

The Board granted service connection for left ankle collateral ligament sprain and left shoulder strain with an effective date of February 2, 2020. Service connection was also granted for headaches. The Board denied earlier effective dates for bilateral shin splints and degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, but granted a 10 percent rating for bilateral shin splints.

The Board remands the claim for a back disability to obtain additional evidence and an adequate medical opinion regarding the etiology of the condition.