Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2003

The Board has granted the veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine disorder, finding that it is related to her in-service motorcycle accident and resolving any doubt in her favor.

The Board determined that the veteran's current spondylosis of the cervical spine is not related to an in-service neck injury and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection due to lack of new and material evidence for his cervical spine condition, as well as denial of service connection for back and left leg injuries. The Board found no causal relationship between current disabilities and service.

The veteran's cervical spine disorder is found to be related to a World War II injury, and service connection for this condition is granted.,Service connection for residuals of a head injury is denied as there is no evidence linking the current conditions to an incident in service.,The veteran's bilateral leg disability (varicose veins) is not considered to have been caused or aggravated by an incident in service, and service connection is denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current disability of the lumbar, thoracic and cervical spine segments is related to an injury sustained during service.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred on February 3, 1999 at Yuma Regional Medical Center due to lack of authorization and because the services were not related to a service-connected disability.

The Board has determined that the veteran's cervical and dorsal spine disabilities do not warrant a higher rating as they are currently manifested by slight limitation of motion, with no arthritis or intervertebral disc syndrome. The current ratings for these conditions remain at 10 percent.

The Board has determined that the veteran's degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, lumbar spine, and left hip do not warrant a rating in excess of their current evaluations.

The veteran's service-connected vulvar and cervical condyloma resulted in severe symptoms that were not controlled by continuous treatment, warranting a 30 percent disability rating.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims of service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus due to a lack of timely filing of a substantive appeal. The RO previously denied claims of service connection for epididymitis, rhinitis, osteoarthritis of the cervical, dorsal, and lumbar spine, and sinus condition on final basis. New evidence received since previous denials is not sufficient to reopen these claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's cervical spine disability warrants a 30 percent rating, reflecting significant limitation of motion and pain. The previous 10 percent rating is now considered inadequate.

The veteran's service-connected cervical spine disability has been rated based on the criteria for degenerative disc disease and related radiculopathy. The appeals for higher ratings have not met the established criteria under the current rating schedule.

The veteran's appeal for an increased rating for arthritis of the cervical spine was dismissed as he requested withdrawal of his appeal.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an earlier effective date and increased evaluation, finding that there was no evidence of a formal or informal claim for service connection prior to January 4, 1991.

The Board finds that the veteran does not have a bone, joint, muscle, ligament, nerve, or physical stress disability that is service-connected. The preponderance of evidence supports this conclusion.

The Board found that the veteran's cervical and lumbar spine disorders are not related to service or his service-connected compression fracture of the 12th dorsal vertebra.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for special monthly DIC based on being housebound due to her disabilities, finding that she was not substantially confined to her home or immediate premises.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a separate neck/cervical spine disability other than the already service-connected cervical strain with arthritis, and therefore denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has denied the veteran's claim for service connection of degenerative joint and disc disease of the cervical spine as secondary to his service-connected laryngeal carcinoma, finding that there is no evidence supporting a causal relationship between the two conditions.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection of cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine disabilities, right knee and left knee disabilities, and an eye disability. The decision is final.