Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2002

The Board denied the appellant's claims for higher ratings for his lumbar spine disorder, hypertension, and residuals of a right thigh injury as there is no evidence of severe intervertebral disc syndrome or severe limitation of motion in the lumbar spine.

The veteran's claim for service connection for gunshot wound residuals of left leg sciatic nerve injury was granted with an effective date of January 19, 1968. This is the day following his separation from active duty.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his sacroiliac injury and inflammation of the sciatic nerve, finding that a 40 percent rating was warranted for the sacroiliac injury but denying any increase in rating for the sciatic nerve prior to September 14, 2000.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current C5 radiculopathy, which is a result of an injury in service, was incurred during active duty and grants service connection for this disability.

The veteran's arthritis of the elbows was not granted service connection. However, his degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine with sciatica and rheumatic heart disease were granted service connection, along with noncompensable initial ratings for his shoulders.

The Board has determined that the veteran is entitled to a 20 percent disability rating for herniated nucleus pulposus at L4-5 with radiculopathy, which is currently rated as 10 percent disabling.

The Board denied service connection for gastritis, left hip disability, sciatica, and left knee disability due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.

The VA denied an increased rating for the veteran's service-connected chronic low back disorder with L5 radiculopathy, currently rated at 40 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and secondary service connection for cervical radiculopathy/myelopathy of the right upper extremity due to her service-connected cervical spine disability. The veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for posttraumatic headaches was also denied, as were her claims for a higher evaluation for residuals of cervical spine injury with degenerative changes.

The veteran's heart condition is not found to be due to treatment during a period of VA hospitalization from August 9 to 16, 1996. The residuals of right shoulder dislocation with carpal tunnel syndrome and C8-T1 radiculopathy are currently rated as 10 percent.

The Board found that the veteran's disabilities, including severe cardiac arrhythmia and degenerative disc disease of the low back with radicular symptoms, rendered him unemployable throughout the appeal period. The RO had overlooked significant disability such as hypertension and rated the veteran's low back disorder too low.

The veteran's claim for an initial increased evaluation of 20 percent for intervertebral disc syndrome with left leg radiculopathy was denied as a matter of law due to his failure to report for scheduled VA examinations.

The veteran's intervertebral disc syndrome with right lumbar radiculopathy is pronounced, with persistent symptoms compatible with sciatic neuropathy. The Board finds that the disability more nearly approximates a 60 percent rating.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities did not cause or contribute substantially to his death from metastatic non-small cell lung carcinoma.

The Board has determined that the veteran's degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, with herniation and right radiculopathy, warrants a 60% rating. The PTSD issue remains in appellate status as it does not meet the criteria for a disability rating in excess of 70%.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected heart disorder did not contribute to his death or accelerate it. The cause of death was determined to be esophageal cancer, which began due to chronic reflux issues related to his service-connected conditions and aggravated by medications for those conditions.

The Board found that there is no current disability related to a left foot muscle injury and denied the claim. The veteran's lumbar disc disorder was granted service connection with an initial rating of 20 percent.

The veteran's cervical radiculopathy, status post discectomy, was granted a 20 percent disability rating effective from June 1, 1997. The claim for an evaluation in excess of 20 percent for the period from January 31, 1997, to February 10, 1997, was denied.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence was submitted to reopen the veteran's claims for service connection for chronic low back disorder and chronic right knee disorder. The claims are granted as both conditions were found to be related to incidents in service, though arthritis of these areas is not presumed due to a lack of continuity or evidence showing onset during service.

The veteran's low back disability was granted a 50% evaluation before June 9, 1997. However, the left knee injury was denied an increased rating.