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STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA

SUPREME COURT OF APPEALS

PRESTON H. LANHAM,

Claimant Below, Petitioner

vs.) No. 18-0538 (BOR Appeal No. 2052308)

(Claim No. 2016006956)

 

UNITED COAL COMPANY, LLC, 

Employer Below, Respondent

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Petitioner Preston H. Lanham, by Robert L. Stultz, his attorney, appeals the decision of 

the West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Board of Review. United Coal Company, LLC, by 

Timothy E. Huffman, its attorney, filed a timely response.

The issue on appeal is medical benefits and temporary total disability benefits. The 

claims administrator closed the claim for temporary total disability benefits on August 4, 2016. 

On September 8, 2016, it denied authorization for a lumbar epidural steroid injection. The Office 

of Judges affirmed the decisions in its October 11, 2017, Order. The Order was affirmed by the 

Board of Review on May 16, 2018. The Court has carefully reviewed the records, written 

arguments, and appendices contained in the briefs, and the case is mature for consideration.

This Court has considered the parties’ briefs and the record on appeal. The facts and legal 

arguments are adequately presented, and the decisional process would not be significantly aided 

by oral argument. Upon consideration of the standard of review, the briefs, and the record 

presented, the Court finds no substantial question of law and no prejudicial error. For these 

reasons, a memorandum decision is appropriate under Rule 21 of the Rules of Appellate 

Procedure. 

Mr. Lanham, a scoop operator, injured his lower back while attempting to push a box 

with a loader on August 29, 2015. The employees’ and physicians’ report of injury indicates Mr. 

Lanham injured his lower back while pushing on a starter box. The physician’s section lists the 

diagnoses as lumbosacral joint sprain, disturbance of skin sensation, low back pain, difficulty 

walking, and degeneration of lumbar or lumbosacral disc. It also indicates that the injury 

aggravated preexisting back pain. The claim was held compensable for lumbar strain on 

September 17, 2015.

FILED

November 2, 2018

EDYTHE NASH GAISER, CLERK

SUPREME COURT OF APPEALS

OF WEST VIRGINIA
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An MRI of the lumbar spine was performed on October 9, 2015, and showed multilevel 

degenerative changes. Joseph Grady, M.D., performed an independent medical evaluation on 

November 16, 2015. He found that Mr. Lanham had not reached maximum medical 

improvement. He had undergone physical therapy and now requested a spinal injection. Dr. 

Grady opined that due to the absence of spinal pain or tenderness on examination, spinal 

injections would likely be unhelpful. He found that Mr. Lanham had no radiculopathy so an 

epidural injection would likely provide no relief of pain. However, Dr. Grady found that Mr. 

Lanham reported tenderness on examination of the bilateral sacroiliac joint, and therefore, an 

injection to that area may improve his symptoms. 

On April 12, 2016, Koshy Mathai, M.D., from the Pain Management Clinic, stated that 

Mr. Lanham reported pain in his lower back, buttocks, groin, and legs. Dr. Mathai read the 

lumbar MRI and diagnosed low back pain, bilateral lower extremity pain, lumbar disc disease, 

lumbar stenosis, lumbar facet arthropathy, and chronic pain syndrome. He recommended a 

lumbar epidural steroid injection. 

Scott Rainey, D.O., performed an independent medical evaluation on July 1, 2016, in 

which he concluded that Mr. Lanham had reached maximum medical improvement. Dr. Rainey 

found that he had 5% impairment for loss of range of motion but placed Mr. Lanham in Lumbar 

Category IIA of Table 75 from the American Medical Association’s Guides to the Evaluation of 

Permanent Impairment (4th ed. 1993). Under West Virginia Code of State Rules §85-20 (2016), 

he placed Mr. Lanham in Category I and recommended no impairment. 

The claims administrator closed the claim for temporary total disability benefits on 

August 4, 2016. On September 2, 2016, Mr. Lanham was seen by Dr. Mathai who again 

requested authorization for lumbar epidural steroid injections. The claims administrator denied 

the request on September 8, 2016. On October 5, 2016, Mr. Lanham was treated by R. Biundo, 

M.D., who diagnosed degenerative disc disease with ongoing pain. He recommend injections for 

pain management and function. 

Mr. Lanham testified in a deposition on October 6, 2016, that he had no lumbar spine or 

leg problems prior to the compensable injury. He asserted that this was the first back injury he 

had experienced. He stated that he continued to work until February 22, 2016, but that his 

condition steadily worsened. He stated that he was still unable to sit, stand, or bend over for an 

extended amount of time. 

In an October 10, 2016, petition to reopen the claim for temporary total disability, Mr. 

Lanham alleged an aggravation or progression of his condition and facts not previously 

considered. The physician’s section was completed by Dr. Biundo, who diagnosed lumbar 

spondylosis without myelopathy or radiculopathy. He stated that Mr. Lanham had been 

temporarily and totally disabled since February 23, 2016. 

An independent medical evaluation was performed by Karl Boone, D.C., on December 1, 

2016. Dr. Boone stated that he disagreed with the prior findings that Mr. Lanham had reached 
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maximum medical improvement. He stated that Mr. Lanham had preexisting degenerative 

changes; however, he was able to function prior to the work-related injury. Dr. Boone 

recommended a pain management evaluation and possibly epidural steroid injections. He also 

recommended an evaluation by Dr. Biundo to create a plan for rehabilitation and physical 

therapy. 

On May 10, 2017, Prasadarao Mukkamala, M.D., performed an independent medical 

evaluation in which he found that Mr. Lanham had reached maximum medical improvement. He 

found 6% impairment from range of motion but concluded that no specific spine condition 

resulted from the compensable injury. Dr. Mukkamala placed Mr. Lanham in Lumbar Category I 

of West Virginia Code of State Rules §85-20 for an impairment rating of 0%. 

The Office of Judges affirmed the claim administrator’s decisions closing the claim for 

temporary total disability benefits and denying authorization of a lumbar epidural steroid 

injection on October 11, 2017. It found that the October 2015 MRI showed multilevel 

degenerative changes of the lumbar spine. Dr. Mathai, who recommended epidural steroid 

injections, diagnosed low back pain, bilateral leg pain, lumbar disc disease, lumbar stenosis, 

lumbar facet arthropathy, and chronic pain syndrome. Dr. Biundo also recommended epidural 

steroid injections for his diagnoses of degenerative disc disease with ongoing pain and 

discomfort. The Office of Judges found that Dr. Biundo suggested that Mr. Lanham’s 

degenerative changes are a result of the compensable injury; however, no attempt was made to 

add the diagnoses as compensable components of the claim. The only compensable diagnosis in 

the claim is a lumbar sprain. The Office of Judges also questioned, per Dr. Grady’s findings, 

whether an epidural steroid injection would even benefit Mr. Lanham given that he has no 

evidence of radiculopathy. 

The Office of Judges further found that Mr. Lanham continued working until February 

22, 2016, when he was no longer able to continue due to his condition. The Office of Judges 

therefore questioned whether his inability to continue working was a result of the compensable 

injury or his preexisting degenerative condition. The Office of Judges concluded that Dr. 

Biundo’s finding that Mr. Lanham was temporarily and totally disabled was due to lumbar 

spondylosis without myelopathy or radiculopathy, a lower back condition which is not a 

compensable component of the claim. The Office of Judges also found that the lumbar epidural 

steroid injections were requested to treat the lumbar spondylosis and was also properly denied.

The Board of Review adopted the findings of fact and conclusions of law of the Office of Judges 

and affirmed its Order on May 16, 2018.

After review, we agree with the reasoning and conclusions of the Office of Judges as 

affirmed by the Board of Review. A preponderance of the evidence indicates that Mr. Lanham 

has reached maximum medical improvement for his compensable lumbar sprain. Temporary 

total disability benefits were therefore properly suspended. Further, the epidural steroid injection 

was requested to treat a noncompensable condition and was properly denied. 

For the foregoing reasons, we find that the decision of the Board of Review is not in clear 

violation of any constitutional or statutory provision, nor is it clearly the result of erroneous 
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conclusions of law, nor is it based upon a material misstatement or mischaracterization of the 

evidentiary record. Therefore, the decision of the Board of Review is affirmed. 

 Affirmed.

ISSUED: November 2, 2018

CONCURRED IN BY:

Chief Justice Margaret L. Workman

Justice Elizabeth D. Walker

Justice Paul T. Farrell sitting by temporary assignment

Justice Tim Armstead

Justice Evan H. Jenkins

Justice Allen H. Loughry II suspended and therefore not participating.