Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the Veteran's low back disability and residuals of a right orchiectomy.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA and OPM records, and scheduling a VA examination for the right shoulder disorder.

The Veteran does not have a back disability, to include a left lower extremity nerve disability, a neck disability, a knee disability, a shoulder disability, an ankle disability, or a hip disability, that is related to his service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's appeal requires additional development and remand for several issues, including scheduling a videoconference hearing for tinnitus, obtaining clarification on the etiology of his right shoulder and lumbar spine disorders, and considering whether he is entitled to TDIU.

The Veteran's low back strain has been rated at 20 percent since the initial grant of service connection, reflecting significant functional impairment but not ankylosis or intervertebral disc syndrome.

The Board has dismissed the appeal of the issue of entitlement to service connection for degenerative disc disease C5-6 due to withdrawal by the Veteran. The claim of bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability in either ear that meets VA's definition of hearing loss.

The Veteran's claim for restoration of the 40 percent rating assigned his low back disability from December 22, 2011 is denied as there was improvement in his service-connected condition.,The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for migraine headaches disorder is denied as the evidence does not meet the criteria for a 50% rating.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current low back disability is causally related to his active service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including new VA examinations and the provision of a statement of the case on his GSW residuals claim.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for low back disorder and cervical spine disorder, finding that his current conditions are related to his military service. The dental condition claim was withdrawn by the Veteran.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to inadequate examination and missing VA treatment records. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disorder will be reconsidered with new evidence.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including a new VA examination and obtaining treatment records. The Veteran's claim of entitlement to a rating greater than 40 percent for lumbosacral strain is being returned to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office for additional consideration.

The Veteran's DDD of the cervical spine is found to be proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities, specifically his DDD of the lumbar spine and right leg shortening. His prostate cancer was not incurred in or aggravated by service and may not be presumed to have been incurred therein.

The Board found that the Veteran's low back disability is not service-connected and denied his claim for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for a ganglion cyst of the right wrist.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including a new VA examination to address the etiology of all symptoms related to the Veteran's claimed bilateral hip disability, to include a back disorder.

The Board has granted a rating of 30 percent for post-traumatic lumbar arthritis with residual L1 compression deformity and an initial rating of 20 percent for left L5 radiculopathy with foot drop, effective from March 4, 2009.

The Veteran's appeal is about a higher rating for his service-connected thoracolumbar spine disability, specifically regarding neurological manifestations and whether he should receive a separate rating based on incapacitating episodes. The case has been remanded to obtain additional medical opinions and records.

The Veteran's service-connected low back disability is currently evaluated at 60 percent, and the Board finds that this evaluation adequately reflects the severity of his condition. The evidence does not support a higher rating.

The Veteran's claims for higher initial ratings for cervical and right shoulder disabilities were denied as the evidence did not show that her symptoms more nearly approximated the criteria for a rating in excess of 20 percent or 10 percent, respectively.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and effective dates have been granted. The initial compensable rating for right shoulder bursitis prior to January 29, 2013 has also been granted.