Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The veteran's request for Service Disabled Veterans Insurance (RH) is inextricably intertwined with his claims for service connection for various disabilities. The appeal of eligibility for RH is held in abeyance pending resolution of the service connection claims.

The veteran's low back disability, characterized by severe degenerative joint disease, neurological impairment, and fusion in the lumbar spine, has been granted a 60 percent evaluation effective January 27, 1999.

The veteran's disabilities are all nonservice-connected and do not meet the criteria for special monthly pension based on need for regular aid and attendance or by reason of being housebound.

The Board denied the veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection due to lack of new and material evidence, concluding that the submitted medical records did not establish a relationship between the back complaints noted in service in 1965 and the subsequent disc herniation in 1988.

The Board has determined that the submitted evidence is not new and material, thus denying the veteran's application to reopen his claim of service connection for a low back disorder.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for mechanical low back pain with bilateral knee pain and lower extremity numbness due to new evidence submitted since the July 1996 denial. The claim is now pending on its merits.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for chronic low back pain and spondylosis of the lumbar spine with multi-level spinal stenosis, finding that the evidence does not support a grant of service connection.

The veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability is rated at 40 percent, which reflects the severity of his symptoms including back pain and limitation of motion. The RO has granted a separate 10 percent rating for degenerative arthritis.

The VA denied an increased rating for the veteran's service-connected degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine with disc disease, status post lumbar laminectomy.

The Board denied the veteran's service connection claims for various conditions, including low back disability, major depression, memory loss, mood swings, and sleeplessness due to an undiagnosed illness, joint pain due to an undiagnosed illness, testicular cancer (to include as secondary to Persian Gulf War service), loss of appetite due to an undiagnosed illness, impotence due to an undiagnosed illness, constipation due to an undiagnosed illness, postoperative residuals of a lipoma of the left infrascapular area, and blood in the bowels due to an undiagnosed illness. The Board found that there was no evidence supporting these claims.

The Board has determined that the claim is not well grounded and remands it for further development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.

The veteran's claim for a total rating based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities was granted with an effective date of October 18, 1996.

The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based upon individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and conducting examinations.

The Board has reopened the claim of service connection for residuals of a neck and back injury due to new medical evidence linking current degenerative disc disease to in-service injuries. The case is now remanded for further examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for special monthly pension based on the need for regular aid and attendance or being housebound, finding that he does not meet the criteria due to his ability to perform daily activities and manage finances.

The Board has determined that the veteran's right ankle and back disorders are related to service, resulting in a grant of service connection for these conditions.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities are of such severity as to render him unemployable without regard to his advancing age or the presence of any nonservice-connected disorders.

The Board found that the veteran's cervical spine pathology did not begin in service and is not related to any injury sustained during service. The claim for secondary service connection remains unadjudicated.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his right total knee replacement and bilateral hearing loss, effectively preclude him from engaging in substantially gainful employment.