Back / lumbar spine decisions — 2025

The Board of Veterans' Appeals remands the claims for service connection for recurrent lumbar spine, right knee, and left knee disabilities due to unverified periods of active service and missing medical records.

The Board denied an increased rating for lumbosacral strain but granted separate ratings of 10 percent each for right and left lower extremity neuropathy of the anterior tibial nerve.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, cervical strain, lumbar strain, and associated bilateral radicular disabilities.

The Board remands the previously denied claim of entitlement to service connection for a low back disability for readjudication, as new and relevant evidence has been received.

The Board remands the case for an additional medical opinion to determine the etiology of the Veteran's back disorder.

The Board granted service connection for a back condition, left foot pes planus, bilateral knee disability, and right hip disability based on the evidence supporting their occurrence during active duty.

The Board granted a 10 percent disability rating for the service-connected scar, status-post appendectomy, but denied all other claims for increased ratings and service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, as well as remanded certain issues for further development.

The Board granted service connection for multiple conditions, including a back condition, sacroiliitis, and degenerative arthritis in various joints.

The appeals for initial evaluations of erectile dysfunction, lumbar spine spondylosis with degenerative disc disease, and radiculopathy in the right and left lower extremities have been withdrawn and dismissed.

The Board remands the claims for service connection due to a failure by the VA contractor to provide an examination at a time when the Veteran could attend.

The Board granted an effective date of February 12, 2013 for special monthly compensation (SMC) based on statutory housebound criteria.

The Board granted service connection for hypertension, right hand pain, and lumbar spine condition; denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, left shoulder condition, and obstructive sleep apnea; and remanded claims related to tinnitus, PTSD, TDIU, and other conditions.

The appeal seeking review of the previously denied claim of service connection for a low back disability, claimed as lower back pain, is dismissed due to lack of an eligible decision within one year prior to receipt of the December 2020 VA Form 10182.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a back disability and right knee disability to provide the Veteran with adequate VA examinations.

The Board denied increased ratings for the lumbar spine disability, right and left lower extremity radiculopathy (femoral), posterior trunk scars, and painful scars. However, it granted a rating of 40 percent for the lumbar spine disability from August 30, 2022, an earlier effective date of April 10, 2019, for service connection for painful trunk scars, and an earlier effective date of November 9, 2020, for TDIU and DEA.

The untimely appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and a lumbosacral strain (back strain condition) were dismissed.

The Veteran's PTSD was granted an increased rating of 50 percent from July 28, 2023. Other claims for increased ratings were denied.

The Board granted a 40 percent rating for lumbar strain but denied higher ratings and service connection for other conditions.

The appeal for service connection for left shoulder disability was granted in full, and the issues of entitlement to a rating higher than 10 percent for right hamstring tendonitis, left elbow bursitis, chronic left ankle sprain, and low back disability were denied or dismissed.