The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a sinus condition due to undiagnosed illness and an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbar strain. The Veteran was not granted service connection based on his claimed sinus condition as there were no objective indications of chronic disability resulting from an undiagnosed illness during active service. For the lumbar strain, the Board found that the evidence did not show forward flexion limited to 30 degrees or less and favorable ankylosis.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claimed sinus condition was not supported by objective medical evidence of a diagnosed disability and no history of chronic disability resulting from undiagnosed illness during service. The VA examination reports indicated that the Veteran had forward flexion limited to 60 degrees, which is within the normal range for thoracolumbar spine motion.
- Claimed conditions
- sinus condition, lumbar strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- April 20, 2010
- Citation
- 1014934
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 1014934.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examination provided in April 2024 was inadequate for adjudication purposes and remands the case for a new examination to determine if the Veteran's sinus condition is related to his military service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for service connection for right hand arthritis and left hand arthritis have been dismissed.,The Veteran's appeals for a higher rating for lumbar strain, radiculopathy of the left sciatic nerve, and radiculopathy of the right sciatic nerve have been remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for lumbar strain and lumbar intervertebral disc syndrome with left sciatica. The right lower extremity sciatica claim is remanded due to a duty-to-assist error.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sinus condition, left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, and sleep apnea as there was no current disability related to these conditions during the pendency of the claim. The Veteran's self-reported symptoms were not supported by medical evidence.
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