Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2012

The Board found that the Veteran's cervical spine disability was not present in service or until many years thereafter and is not related to service. As such, the claim for service connection for a cervical spine disability was denied.

The Veteran's degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine was not shown to be directly related to his military service, and it is not considered secondary to a service-connected condition. The Board found no medical evidence linking the current disorder to service.

The Veteran's service-connected right hip bursitis, cervical strain, status post right shoulder dislocation, and ganglion cyst of the left wrist are each rated at 10 percent. The claims for higher initial ratings have been denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development and a hearing before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar and cervical spine disabilities were aggravated during service, warranting service connection.

The Board finds that it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran's sleep disorder, neck disability, and traumatic brain injury are secondary to his service-connected convulsive disability. Service connection is granted for these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a VA spine examination to assess the severity of his service-connected cervical spine disability and any associated neurologic abnormalities. The effective date remains unchanged.

The Board found no evidence of a chronic lumbar or cervical spine disorder in service, and the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service. The claim for service connection is denied.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining a new VA examination and opinion to address the Veteran's cervical spine disability claim.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to ensure all relevant evidence is obtained and considered in the Veteran's claims for service connection. This includes obtaining his Air National Guard service treatment records, verifying his periods of active duty training (ADT) and inactive duty training (IADT), and obtaining any private treatment records related to his claimed conditions.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a nexus between the Veteran's cervical and lumbar spine disabilities and his military service, thus denying his claims for service connection.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for residuals of cervical spine fusion and left ear hearing loss to allow for additional development. The issues of entitlement to a compensable evaluation for right ear hearing loss are also being remanded.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability and associated upper extremity radiculopathy were denied higher evaluations. The VA examinations indicated moderate to severe incomplete paralysis of the upper radicular group, but not complete paralysis.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development and consideration, including obtaining service personnel records and arranging for a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional medical records and for a VA examination. The issues on appeal are whether he is entitled to a temporary total rating based upon convalescence from March 2008 cervical spine surgery, and whether he is unemployable due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for cervical spine degenerative arthritis and bilateral hearing loss were denied as the evidence did not meet the criteria for higher ratings under applicable rating criteria.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar spine and cervical spine disabilities are service-connected, with the latter being linked to his previously service-connected lumbar spine disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and further development is needed, including contacting the appropriate state agency for worker's compensation records.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for clarification on whether his carpal tunnel syndrome and other neurological disabilities are related to his service-connected cervical spine disability. The case will be returned to the RO/AMC for further development.

The Board found no nexus between the Veteran's cervical spine disability and service, including his service-connected muscle tension headaches. The claim for a cervical neck disorder characterized by pain was granted, while the claim for muscle tension headaches was denied.