Radiculopathy & sciatica Board decisions

The Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) denied the veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine and radiculopathy. The Board also found that there was no evidence to support a secondary service connection for depression.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an increased evaluation for his back disability and TDIU due to service-connected disabilities.

The Board found that the veteran's claims for hearing loss, loss of visual acuity, and hypothyroidism (to include as due to an undiagnosed illness) are not well grounded. The other conditions were also not well grounded.

The veteran's increased rating claims for various service-connected disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling examinations.

The Board has granted a 60 percent disability rating for the veteran's lumbar spine fusion at L5-S1 with radiculopathy, effective from the date of the decision.

The veteran's claim for non-service-connected pension benefits was denied multiple times, and the effective date of his award is set at June 11, 1997.

The veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain with intermittent right sciatic neuralgia was rated at 40 percent since October 9, 1989. The appeal for higher ratings is denied.

The veteran's PTSD is granted, rated at 50 percent disabling. The neurological deficit in the right upper extremity is considered to be a manifestation of his service-connected post-operative cervical intervertebral disc syndrome and thus secondary to it. A separate compensable rating for tinnitus is assigned.

The Board finds that the evidence is in equipoise on whether the veteran has a disability of the left chest wall/upper abdomen and if it is related to an injury during active service. Therefore, service connection for thoracic radiculopathy is granted.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral ear disorder, to include bilateral hearing loss is well grounded. However, further examination and development are needed before the merits of this claim can be evaluated.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for higher evaluations for his lumbar spine disability and genital herpes, finding that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 10 percent for either condition.

The Board found that the veteran's claims for higher ratings were not well-grounded, and thus denied them.

The Board has granted a disability rating of 60 percent for the residuals of a low back injury with radiculopathy, effective from the day following the veteran's separation from service. Ratings in excess of 20 percent have been denied for right shoulder strain and left shoulder strain, and ratings in excess of 10 percent have been denied for right carpal tunnel syndrome and left carpal tunnel syndrome.

The veteran's cervical and lumbar spine disabilities are being remanded for additional development, including obtaining Social Security Administration records and VA outpatient treatment records. The RO will also schedule the veteran for examinations to assess his current disability levels.

The Board has granted a higher rating of 60 percent for the veteran's chronic low back pain with lumbosacral radiculopathy since January 1997, as it is productive of pronounced intervertebral disc syndrome.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a herniated disc at L5-S1, status post diskectomy and increased evaluations for cervical spine degenerative changes with radiculitis and right shoulder bursitis. The evidence does not support a finding of a nexus between these conditions and the veteran's military service or service-connected disabilities.

The veteran's service-connected fibromyositis of the lumbar spine is rated at 20 percent, and there is no basis for a separate rating based on multiple noncompensable disabilities.

The veteran's low back strain is rated at 40 percent, the highest available under Diagnostic Code 5295.

The Board denied a compensable rating for the veteran's thoracic radiculopathy, T3-T4, finding that there were no objective findings equivalent to moderate incomplete paralysis or limitation of thoracic motion due to weakened movement, pain, fatigue, or loss of coordination.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar radiculopathy L4-L5 with degenerative joint disease and a right hip condition, both secondary to his service-connected right knee condition. The decision found that there was no competent medical evidence linking these conditions to his service-connected right knee condition.