Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2005

The Board has determined that the veteran's cervical spine disability warrants a 30 percent rating effective from November 1, 1992.

The Board denied service connection for residuals of a thoracic spine injury and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), finding no evidence of chronic disability within the presumptive period. Service connection for cervical spine injury was not granted due to lack of contemporaneous medical records linking current condition to service.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to properly assess the veteran's neck disability, including obtaining medical records and conducting a VA examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection due to lack of evidence showing a current disability and no link between any diagnosed conditions and his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's cervical spine disability is not related to his military service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has granted a 50 percent rating for the service-connected cervical spine disability, effective September 26, 2003. The condition is characterized by severe limitation of motion and ankylosis.

The case is being remanded to obtain additional VA examinations for the veteran's spine disabilities, including orthopedic and neurological evaluations. The RO will then readjudicate the claims based on the new evidence.

The Board found that the veteran's left foot, right foot, cervical spine, low back, right ankle and right shoulder disabilities were not present in service or until many years thereafter, and they are not related to service or to an incident of service origin, or a service-connected disability.

The Board found that the veteran's low back and cervical spine disabilities were not incurred or aggravated by service, and denied his claims.

The VA determined that the veteran's cervical spine staph infection was not caused by negligence or fault on the part of VA, and thus denied his claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.

The Board has granted service connection for a cervical spine disorder and a lumbar spine disorder, but denied service connection for a bilateral knee disorder.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete development and requests additional evidence from the veteran.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, arthritis of the cervical spine, arthritis of the right thumb, and arthritis of the left thumb. The veteran's arteriosclerotic heart disease is currently rated at 30 percent.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for cervical, thoracic, lumbar spine disabilities and basal cell carcinoma removal facial scars. The evidence does not support a finding of direct service connection.

The December 1992 rating decision that did not assign separate evaluations for headache and neck symptomatology is found to be valid. The veteran's cervical spine disability, manifested by painful and limited motion due to arthritis, warrants a 20 percent evaluation.

The VA determined that the veteran's degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine was not incurred in or aggravated by his active military service, may not be presumed to have been incurred therein, and is not secondarily related to his service-connected lumbar spine, left foot, and/or left ankle disability.

The Board found that the veteran's cervical and lumbar spine disabilities were not incurred in or aggravated by his military service, as there was no medical evidence linking these conditions to his active duty. The claims for service connection are therefore denied.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, result in total occupational and social impairment from October 1, 2004.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for an increased rating for his cervical spine disability, finding that it did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected cervical spine and lumbar spine disabilities do not warrant an increased rating in excess of the current ratings.