Neck / cervical spine decisions — 2023

The Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple conditions have been dismissed due to his death.

The Board has granted service connection for neck and back disabilities, but denied service connection for left and right knee disabilities.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating due to inadequate examinations and lack of causal linkage opinions. The Veteran's headache disorder may be related to his active service, but a direct service connection is required. For the cervical spine disability claim, there is conflicting evidence regarding ankylosis.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection of bilateral hearing loss, bilateral plantar fasciitis, right hand condition, tinnitus, headaches as secondary to head/nose injury, lower back condition, and cervical spine disability due to an error in docketing under the AMA system.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including back disability, neck disability, left knee disability, psychiatric disability, skin disability, respiratory disability (to include asbestosis), tinnitus, and bilateral hearing loss. The evidence did not meet the regulatory threshold for these disabilities.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for his neck and left upper extremity radiculopathy disabilities have been dismissed as the appellant withdrew his appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Veteran's claims for TBI, agoraphobia, memory loss, hemorrhoids, OSA, and erectile dysfunction have been dismissed.,Service connection has been granted for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine and degenerative joint disease of the thoracic spine with history of thoracolumbar strain.

The Veteran's increased ratings for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities are remanded, as well as the TDIU claim. New VA examinations are needed to assess current severity of these conditions.

The Veteran's hypertension is granted as service-connected. The Board finds that the Veteran has a current disability of neck disability and Raynaud's Disease, but remands for additional examination to determine if these conditions are related to service or other disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to obtain or maintain substantially gainful employment, and thus grants his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Board has decided to remand the case due to inadequate examination opinions and missing private medical records. The Veteran's cervical strain is being reviewed again for service connection.

The Board has granted an effective date of February 17, 2009 for the award of TDIU based on service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran's claim was pending and new evidence received within one year prior to this decision led to a reopening of his claim.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's back, neck, right hip, and right knee disabilities. The claims were reopened due to new evidence provided by a private examiner.

The Board has granted service connection for a right wrist disability and a neck disability, finding that the Veteran's conditions began during active service. The decision also denied service connection for dental trauma.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and service connection have been dismissed. The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's disabilities, including right hip disability, left hip disability, PTSD, radiculopathy of the upper extremities, rotator cuff tendonitis strain of the shoulder, bilateral feet disabilities, neck disability, back disability, sciatica of the lower extremities, and wrist and ankle disabilities.

The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to PTSD and awarded service connection for neck and low back conditions on a direct basis.,Obstructive sleep apnea is now considered service-connected, with the primary cause being linked to PTSD. Neck and low back disabilities are also recognized as having originated during active duty.

The Veteran's lumbosacral strain, tension headaches, right knee strain, and cervical strain are all granted as service-connected.,Service connection is also established for rhinitis and left wrist sprain. Groin rash was denied.

The Veteran's cervical spine, lumbar spine, right knee, left knee, right foot, and left foot disabilities have been reopened based on new evidence.,Service connection for these conditions is now granted.

The Board has denied a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss disability and has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for headache, neck, right shoulder, and right hand disabilities.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the cervical spine disorder, which was secondary to service-connected degenerative arthritis of the left shoulder.