Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disability, including residuals of a low back injury sustained during service, is etiologically related to his military service and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's PTSD and back disability have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation since March 21, 2012. His TDIU is granted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to September 13, 2019 due to insufficient evidence showing that he was unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment as a result of his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient consideration of the Veteran's in-service back pain and its relation to his current low back disability.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for degenerative changes of the lumbar spine and right hip extension were denied. The VA examinations showed that the Veteran had limited range of motion in his thoracolumbar spine, but no ankylosis or other severe impairment.

The Veteran's low back disability was denied for ratings in excess of 10 percent prior to February 6, 2018 and in excess of 20 percent from that date. The Board found the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the limited range of motion.

The Veteran's claim for TDIU is remanded due to incomplete records and non-compliance with the Board's previous directives.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for fibromyalgia, low back pain, chronic fatigue syndrome, and diarrhea were granted effective April 7, 2014. The Board found no evidence to support earlier effective dates.

The Board has remanded several issues for further development, including service connection for right ankle conditions and individual unemployability prior to May 16, 2017.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient information in a previous VA medical examination regarding the Veteran's back disability. The issue of service connection for her back disability is now pending and will be reconsidered.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for DDD of the lumbar spine is being remanded due to additional relevant evidence added to the record since the July 2020 supplemental statement of the case. The case will be returned to the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) for initial consideration.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for lower back condition, fibromyalgia, right shoulder injury, left hip condition, right hip condition, and vision deterioration due to procedural errors in the previous decision.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for migraines prior to March 22, 2010 is granted. The Board finds the evidence at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran’s migraines would most closely approximate very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability.,The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for migraines from March 22, 2010 onward is denied. The highest schedular rating available for migraine headaches under Diagnostic Code 8100 has already been granted.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and examination. The Veteran's sleep apnea is not service-connected, while his lumbosacral spondylosis case requires additional medical opinion to determine its etiology.

The Veteran's service connection claim for right hand weakness (Carpal tunnel syndrome) is denied, and his increased rating claim for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine is also denied.

The Veteran's rating for lumbar spine DDD from February 14, 2012, is denied as the disability does not meet the criteria for a higher rating based on unfavorable ankylosis.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for service connection of a lumbar spine disorder due to inadequate examination and incomplete medical records.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to a lack of information on the competency of VA examiners who performed his C&P examinations. The AOJ is instructed to provide the Veteran with this information.

The Board denied an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for the Veteran's lumbar strain prior to March 7, 2018, finding that the evidence did not show functional loss due to pain or other factors.

The Veteran's appeal to increase the rating for his service-connected back disability has been withdrawn, resulting in dismissal of the case.