Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are remanded due to the need for additional examinations.

The Veteran's claims for hypertension, low back disability, and erectile dysfunction have been reopened due to new and material evidence. The remaining issues are being remanded for further development.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining an addendum medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS).

The Veteran's appeal for service connection of low back disability has been dismissed due to their death.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to incomplete VA examinations and failure to address specific remand directives.

The Veteran's service connection claim for a heart disability is denied, and his claims for increased ratings are all denied. The Board finds no evidence to support the Veteran's assertions of in-service exposure to herbicides or other incidents that would warrant presumptive service connection.

The Board has determined that the VA examinations and opinions provided in October 2019 were inadequate for adjudicative purposes. The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded to provide addendum VA medical opinions addressing the nature and etiology of his claimed conditions, including right ear hearing loss, low back condition, left knee condition, left hip condition, cholecystitis, and GERD.

The Veteran's GERD and back disability are being remanded for additional examination to determine appropriate ratings.

The Board has granted service connection for low back disability and sleep apnea, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions began during or are related to active service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to lack of substantial compliance with prior remand instructions and issues related to pre-existing conditions. The case is being returned for further development, including obtaining service treatment records and personnel records.

The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for left knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and bilateral shin splints due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology.

The Board has granted service connection for mild degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, but denied service connection for right ear hearing loss.

The Board has granted the Veteran's petition to reopen his previously denied claim for service connection for low back disability. The claims of service connection for psoriasis and low back disability secondary to bilateral knee disabilities are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claim for a higher disability rating for his lumbar spine disability was denied. Prior to November 26, 2019, the disability was rated at 10 percent and from that date onwards it is rated at 20 percent.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability, finding that her preexisting condition was not aggravated by her active duty service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been denied as there is no evidence of in-service incurrence or continuity of symptomatology for the claimed conditions.

The Veteran's PTSD and DDD claims are remanded for additional development. The TDIU claim is also remanded.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a shrapnel wound to the low back has been reopened and is granted.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a shrapnel wound to the upper back was denied.

The Board denied service connection for a back disability and dismissed the claim of an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for a right shoulder disability prior to March 10, 2017. The issue of an increased rating in excess of 30 percent for a right shoulder disability from March 10, 2017 onwards is currently pending and will be remanded.,The Board found no evidence linking the Veteran's back disorder to service and dismissed his claim of an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for a right shoulder disability prior to March 10, 2017.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for lumbosacral spondylosis and spinal stenosis was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not show unfavorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine, which is required for a higher rating. For the period between November 19, 2010 and October 16, 2012, the Veteran's TDIU claim was granted based on his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.