Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The Board has remanded the cases for additional development to address pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors in the opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's headaches, cervical strain, and thoracolumbar strain.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for right scoliosis in the thoracic area and left scoliosis in the lumbar area has been dismissed due to a request for withdrawal of the appeal.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for cold injuries to his lower and upper extremities, as well as a back disability. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to service.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at 10 percent, and his right and left lower extremity radiculopathy are each rated at 10 percent. The Board denied increased ratings for all three conditions.

The Board has denied the claims for service connection for a back disorder, right leg disorder, and stomach problems due to lack of evidence of current disabilities during the appeal period.

The Veteran's left lower extremity radiculopathy is rated at 20 percent since November 28, 2018. The Board has determined that the evidence does not support a higher rating for this condition.,VA did not properly consider whether the Veteran was unemployable due to service-connected disabilities prior to October 15, 2015 and is therefore remanding the case for further action on this issue.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for higher initial disability ratings for lumbar strain and right hip strain, finding that the evidence does not support a rating higher than 10 percent for either condition.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple conditions have been dismissed due to errors in the Appeals Modernization Act system. The Board has remanded several issues for further action.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee osteoarthritis, right knee osteoarthritis, and lumbar spondylosis. The decision is based on the Veteran's credible statements of in-service injury and ongoing symptoms.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection and rating of cervical spine strain and thoracolumbar spine disability due to inadequate medical opinions and missing evidence regarding flare-ups.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to a duty to assist error involving private medical records and workers' compensation records. The AOJ must attempt to obtain these records before considering the merits of the claim.

The Veteran's ratings for DDD, thoracolumbar spine with degenerative arthritis, LLE radiculopathy, sciatic nerve, and RLE radiculopathy, sciatic nerve were restored to their previous levels of 20 percent effective April 22, 2021.

The appeal for an increased rating for plantar fasciitis is dismissed.,Service connection for a cervical spine disability and lumbar spine disability are granted. Service connection for a right shoulder disability is denied. The issues of service connection for right hip disability and left hip disability are remanded.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee osteoarthritis, right knee osteoarthritis, and lumbar spondylosis. The decision is based on the Veteran's credible statements of in-service injury and ongoing symptoms.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected PTSD contributed substantially or materially to his cause of death, which was an acute myocardial infarction.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his right wrist disability and back disability, rendered him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation as of August 9, 2015. The Board granted the TDIU effective from that date.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for neck and back disabilities are granted as the evidence supports that these conditions were caused by injuries sustained during active duty.

The Veteran seeks earlier effective dates for service connection grants, but the Board finds no legal basis to grant these claims.,The Veteran's anxiety disorder claim was reopened and granted in June 2014 with an effective date of September 17, 2012.

Service connection is granted for neck and back disabilities, but the claims of service connection for bilateral shoulder and left hip conditions are remanded due to a duty to assist error.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, right knee and left knee conditions, hearing loss, tinnitus, and back issues, rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment from September 25, 2017, to January 14, 2020. The Board granted the Veteran's claim for TDIU based on these disabilities.