Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2023

The Board has remanded the issues regarding the Veteran's neck, right hip, and left hip disabilities for further development.,The Veteran was not granted service connection for her claimed neck disability, right hip disability, or left hip disability.

The Veteran's initial rating claims for right and left ankle fractures, as well as degenerative arthritis/IVDS of the cervical spine have been denied. The Veteran is currently receiving a non-compensable (zero percent) rating for his service-connected ankle disabilities.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and a temporary total rating for his cervical spine disability due to an error in obtaining relevant medical records. The case will be readjudicated after further development.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for ankylosing spondylitis of the thoracolumbar spine and cervical spine due to inadequate examination reports and failure to obtain in-service vaccination records.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to incomplete records and the need for updated VA examinations. The issues of increased evaluations for various service-connected disabilities are being returned to the AOJ for further review.

The Veteran's tension headaches were rated at a noncompensable level prior to May 10, 2018. As of that date, the Veteran was granted a 50 percent disability rating for his tension headaches.,For degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, the Veteran received a 30 percent disability rating from May 20, 2020 onwards. Prior to this date, he did not receive any higher ratings.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient examination reports and lack of etiological opinions. The Veteran's complaints of low back pain, left knee arthritis, and cervical spine DDD are being reviewed again.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's dizziness is related to service and grants service connection for this condition. The cervical spine disability and GERD cases are remanded due to incomplete medical opinions.

The Board has remanded several issues for further development, including a VA medical opinion on the Veteran's characterization of service and a VA examination to evaluate his lumbar spine disability. The remaining claims are also being remanded.

The Board has remanded the claims for further evaluation due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's joint pain and arthritis are related to his service, specifically fuel exposure.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for cervical spine disability, cystitis, and kidney disability due to inadequate medical opinions addressing the Veteran's lay contentions. The case is now pending for further examination and opinion.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating greater than 20 percent for cervical strain was denied. The Board found that the criteria set forth in the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities did not adequately contemplate his disability picture, and thus considered whether other related factors such as marked interference with employment or frequent periods of hospitalization were present. No such factors were identified.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability and gout have been granted service connection.,A rating of 20 percent for left ankle sprain has been granted.

The Board has granted service connection for cervicalgia as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability and assigned a 10 percent rating. The claim for increased ratings for thoracic and lumbar spine disabilities is also granted.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that the Veteran did not have a current disability and there was no evidence of in-service noise exposure or continuity of symptoms.,The Board also denied service connection for residuals of a cervical injury, concluding that while the Veteran has a current neck disability, it is not related to his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for a TDIU as they do not prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for tension headaches, radiculopathy of the radial nerve, and degenerative disc disease with cervical spondylitic myelopathy have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of these claims.

The Board denied service connection for left wrist, right wrist, left knee, right knee, and neck disabilities as the evidence did not support a link between these conditions and active military service.

The Board has remanded two issues: service connection for a cervical spine disability and service connection for a stomach condition, including GERD, related to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The cervical spine issue is remanded due to inadequate medical opinion regarding the nature of in-service neck pain. The stomach condition issue is also remanded due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the etiology of GERD linked to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's cervical spine disability and readjudicating the issues on appeal.