Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a back disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a low back condition, right knee condition, and left knee condition due to inadequate VA examinations that did not consider the Veteran's lay statements.

The Board granted an effective date of August 21, 2019, for the assignment of a 100 percent rating for PTSD with depressive disorder and granted service connection for headaches and vertigo as secondary to the service-connected PTSD.

The Board granted service connection for a lower back disability, finding a nexus between the Veteran's in-service incurrence of low back pain and his current chronic back pain.

The Board granted earlier effective dates for the initial 20 percent and subsequent 40 percent ratings for service-connected multilevel degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, as well as for service connection for right and left lower extremity radiculopathies.

The Board remands the claim for a back disability to correct pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors, including obtaining missing service treatment and personnel records from 1982.

The Board granted an earlier effective date of April 28, 2021, for the award of service connection for bilateral upper and lower extremity diabetic neuropathies.

The Board remands the claim for a VA examination to determine the impacts of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities on his ability to care for himself and his need for aid and attendance.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, lower back disorder (claimed as 'lower back with sciatica'), left leg pain (claimed as an artery rupture), and a bilateral ankle disorder due to insufficient evidence of record.

The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining additional medical opinions and evidence.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for increased ratings, TDIU, and a temporary total convalescence rating due to surgery. The Board dismissed these issues.

The Board remands the issues of entitlement to service connection for a skin disability (claimed as tinea pedis) and a lumbar spine disability, as the Veteran's reports about in-service injuries and symptoms raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating his claims.

The Board denied service connection for depression and PTSD due to a lack of evidence supporting current diagnoses, while remanding the claim for a back disability for further development.

The appeal was withdrawn by the Veteran, and all claims for service connection were dismissed.

The Board denied service connection for right and left lower extremity radiculopathy, but granted service connection for a left knee disability. The Board also denied increased ratings for GERD and lumbosacral strain.

The Board remands the claim for service connection for cervical strain with degenerative disc disease other than IVDS to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the Veteran's lay statements and VA treatment records.

The Board denied service connection for a low back disorder as the evidence did not support that the Veteran's current condition began during active service or was otherwise related to an in-service injury.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a left ankle disability and thoracolumbar degenerative disc disease, to include as secondary to a left ankle disability, due to missing service treatment records and the need for VA examinations.

The Board denied increased ratings for PTSD, left shoulder strain, lumbar strain, status postoperative left knee partial meniscectomy/anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, right long finger sprain, and tinnitus. However, a 10 percent rating was granted for left knee instability, and the denial of an increased initial rating for left foot plantar fasciitis was upheld.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a lumbar spine disorder and right shoulder disorder due to missing service records, requiring additional VA examinations.