Back Injury

[121212]

I Have ?, I hurt my back and went to the ER to have it checked out and they told me to keep off my back and rest and if it was not better to see my doctor, that is were the problem started. I called my doctor and talked with the nurse and see told me my doctor was out of town, so I ask to see another and see told me i could not see any other doc and offered me medication, I told her I wanted to find out what was wrong with my back not to get medication, so see gave me traidal might not spell it the right way, it almost killed me, it made me pass out lowered my temp and made me fill like someone was watching me all the time had to change medication. called back 3 more time she refused to see me. I went to another hospital and made a compliant, the one i went to was a out patient clinic. I finely got a cat scan 2 week later on my back and had disk problems, I made a appointment to see my new doctor and it took 4 weeks from the day I hurt back and my new doctor made me a MRI appointment, 2 week later and it came back that my back had disk problems, narrowing of the canal of the spine, arthritis of the facets. The nurse did give me a week bed rest with out seeing me just wrote it out and medication, a doctor wrote it out with out seeing me the first week when I hurt my back. The problem is I should of been on bed rest for 2 or 3 weeks from the date I hurt my back but could not get that because I could not see a doctor other than the ER doctor I saw 2 time before i saw my new doctor, is there any thing i could do about this and i did get service connected on my back for this injury i just lost some percentage points for the time I lost for not being on bed rest. My new doctor did give me a work wave a month after I hurt my back so my back was hurting enough for him to give me that waver and I do not know how much more I hurt back from not seeing a doctor like the ER said to do.

THANKS

KEN

[Berta]

You might want to file a claim on the ankle injury-

"A moderate limitation of motion of the ankle warrants a 10

percent rating. A marked limitation of motion of the ankle

warrants a 20 percent rating. 38 C.F.R. §4.71a, Diagnostic

Code 5271 (2006)."

It seems to be well documented in your SMRs.And you mentioned limited motion-

This might not- in VA Math- affect your overall rating- but to get the ankle as SC- even at "0" is better than nothing-

a back problem can aggravate an ankle problem and vice versa-

and down the road anything that is- say- 10- 20 % today can get worse-

always good to have the SC -even at Zero established-

Achilles tendon rupture repairs- the VA rates this at 10% usually-

It would be worth while to see it the ankle injury -by medical evidence- puts that disability into a ratable percentage.

There are claims at the BVA such as this one regarding SC ankle problems:

http://www.va.gov/vetapp06/files2/0609687.txt

also under a search there are achilles tendon claims as well as back claims that included the association of foot/ankle problems like this-to SC back conditions-

Edited July 6, 2007 by Berta

[121212]

Thanks for the advise about the ankle, I am service connected on both of ankles and am trying to get bilateral on them right now. I am going to NOD the ankle rating for now if it does not come back the way I want it I Will appeal it, my doctor just prescribed orthopedic shoes for my work and normal day to day walking.

Thanks Ken