Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2018

The Board has determined that the Veteran's neck, shoulder, right-hand, knee, foot, and ankle disabilities are not properly adjudicated due to inadequate medical opinions provided by VA examiners. The Board therefore remands these issues for further development.

The Veteran's mood disorder with depression is rated at 70 percent effective as of March 24, 2014. The rating remains unchanged for the entire appeal period.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board has determined that a higher rating is not warranted.,Service connection for radiculopathy of bilateral upper extremities due to service-connected cervical spine disability is granted.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and reduction of the initial rating are being remanded due to need for new VA examinations.,The Veteran is seeking SMC based on loss of use of upper and lower extremities, which requires a new VA examination.

The Board has granted service connection for degenerative disc disease with foraminal narrowing of the cervical spine and associated left upper extremity radiculopathy, finding that these conditions are causally related to the Veteran's periods of active duty service.

The Board has granted secondary service connection for cervical radiculopathy of the left and right upper extremities, but denied it for a left and right shoulder disability (other than cervical radiculopathy).

The Board denied service connection for left shoulder and neck disabilities, finding that the Veteran did not have a chronic disease entity in service or attributable to service.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability is remanded for a VA examination to determine its etiology and whether it was incurred in service.

The application to reopen the claim for service connection of a cervical spine strain is granted. The claims for service connection of lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, as well as an acquired psychiatric disability are remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional medical records to be obtained from the Martinsburg VAMC and VA treatment records from January 2016.

The Veteran's death was not caused by service-connected conditions, and there is no evidence of herbicide exposure in Thailand. The claim for accrued benefits is denied because the Veteran had no pending claims at the time of his death. The cause of death (cardiopulmonary arrest due to age, underlying cardiac disease, and coronary artery disease) was not caused by service-connected conditions or presumed exposure to herbicides.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a cervical spine disability, lumbar spine disability, and left knee disability due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) beginning February 9, 2016, but not earlier. The effective date of the TDIU award is fixed in accordance with the facts found and was factually ascertainable that the Veteran was unemployable within one year prior to February 9, 2017.

The Veteran seeks an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for PTSD, but this is denied.,Service connection for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD is granted.,Ratings in excess of 10 percent are remanded for patellofemoral syndrome of both knees and hypertension.,Ratings in excess of 20 percent are remanded for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine and radiculopathy of both upper extremities.,TDIU is also remanded.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for cervical sprain with DDD and DJD is denied. The effective date remains October 28, 2010.

The Veteran's applications to reopen claims of service connection for right ear hearing loss, hepatitis C, and cervical spine disability have been granted. The application to reopen the claim of service connection for left leg sciatic nerve disability has been denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete records and need for further examination. The issues include bilateral foot disability, residuals of a head injury, neck disability, and left shoulder disability.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for a lumbar spine disability. The issues of entitlement to increased ratings for diabetes mellitus, type II, with peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities; tension headaches; and PTSD remain remanded due to the need for additional examinations.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for cervical and thoracolumbar degenerative disc disease, as well as migraine headaches prior to October 12, 2017 and thereafter, have been denied.

The Board has granted service connection for left knee disorder, lumbar spine disorder and cervical spine disorder as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right knee meniscus tear.