Back / lumbar spine Board decisions

The case is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical evidence from SSA and scheduling VA examinations.

The veteran is entitled to assistance in acquiring specially adapted housing due to his service-connected Môniére's disease, which precludes locomotion without assistive devices.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current post-operative lumbosacral spine disorder is not related to his military service and thus denied the claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including a psychiatric disorder, bilateral ankle disorder, left side injury, vision problems, throat problem, low back disorder, and flat feet. The evidence submitted did not meet the criteria to reopen these claims.

The Board has determined that there is no competent evidence of current disabilities for the claimed conditions, and thus the veteran's claims for service connection are not well grounded.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim and found it well-grounded. Additional development is needed to determine if the low back disability is related to service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for migraine headaches, chest pain (claimed as residual of fracture of the chest bone), hearing loss in right ear, scar on right upper eyelid (claimed as residual of head injury), and a back disorder including pain and numbness of legs. The appeals were based on direct evidence from service records.

The veteran's low back disorder, rated at 40 percent under DC 5292, does not meet the criteria for a permanent and total disability rating for pension purposes due to his age, education, and occupational history.

The veteran's nonservice-connected disabilities, including bronchial asthma and duodenal ulcer, do not meet the criteria for a permanent and total disability rating for pension purposes.

The VA denied an increased initial disability rating for the veteran's service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, as his condition does not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected knee and back disabilities were denied. The RO assigned noncompensable disability ratings initially, which have now been increased to 10 percent effective December 1, 1997.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The claim for an increased rating of left brachial plexus neuritis was granted, but the issue remains at a 20 percent disability rating since January 12, 1998. Service connection for a back disability is still pending.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims of service connection for a low back disorder and disability manifested by drug addiction, as well as his claim of service connection for HIV-related disability. The reasons given include lack of evidence linking these conditions to service or any other valid theory of service connection.

The Board has determined that the veteran's mental disorder and lower back disability are not service-connected as they are not causally related to his military service. The evidence does not support a finding of inservice incurrence or aggravation of these conditions.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a well-grounded claim for service connection for the lumbar spine disorder or right hip disorder, and thus denied these claims. The veteran's cervical spine disability remains at 20 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for multiple lipomas and a low back disability, finding that his claims were not well-grounded.

The veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating were denied. The low back disability claim was not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence, while the cervical spine disability claim was denied outright as there is no medical evidence linking it to service.

The veteran's lumbar spine disability is currently evaluated at the maximum allowable rating of 60%. Service connection for erectile dysfunction has been granted as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine disability.

The Board has denied reopening the claims for service connection for PTSD and low back disability due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board found no new and material evidence to reopen the claim of service connection for a back disorder, which was initially denied in 1963. The veteran's current back problems are attributed to degenerative disc disease unrelated to his in-service injury.