Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2016

The Board has granted service connection for a skin disability, but denied the remaining issues on appeal. The Veteran's skin disability is presumed to be due to herbicide exposure in Vietnam.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records, scheduling a VA examination, and issuing a Statement of the Case.

The Board has remanded the case due to lack of substantial compliance with its July 2014 remand directives. The Veteran's claims for service connection for neuropathy and radiculopathy in the lower extremities are being returned to the AOJ for further development.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development and consideration of the evidence received since the July 2014 supplemental statement of the case. The issues include entitlement to increased ratings for various disabilities, as well as service connection for a neurological disorder.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a dental condition is denied as the evidence does not meet the criteria for establishing service connection. The issue of a staged rating in excess of 60 percent for folliculitis (including cysts) prior to October 2, 2009 remains pending.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and effective dates have been denied. The Board found no basis to grant higher ratings or effective dates based on the evidence of record.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to his failure to appear for a scheduled Board hearing. His claims for service connection are still pending.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not result in an inability to obtain or maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining outstanding VA and private treatment records, scheduling a VA examination, and readjudicating the issues of increased rating for thoracolumbar spine degenerative disc disease and TDIU.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a Board videoconference hearing at his local AOJ. The issues include service connection for bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, claimed as secondary to lumbosacral strain, and TDIU.

The Veteran's disability ratings for cervical fusion and upper extremity radiculopathy were reduced from 20 percent to 10 percent effective November 1, 2010. The RO has now proposed reducing these ratings back to 20 percent each, but the Veteran did not provide any additional evidence in response.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current lumbar spine and sciatic nerve disabilities are related to his service-connected lumbar spine disability, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's sleep apnea began during his active military service and has continued since then, granting service connection for this condition. The issue of a separate rating for radiculopathy secondary to service-connected degenerative disk disease of the lumbar spine is addressed in the REMAND portion.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's diagnosed back conditions are not related to his service, and any current condition is not proximately due to or aggravated by a service-connected disease or injury.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected lumbosacral strain with radiculopathy was denied, as the evidence did not show that he met the criteria for a higher rating prior to July 24, 2008. As of July 24, 2008, the Veteran's condition warranted a 20% disability rating.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to failure to report for VA examinations and other procedural issues.

The Board found that the Veteran's radiculopathy of both lower extremities primarily consists of sensory impairment, with no significant motor or neurological deficits. As such, a higher rating is not warranted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment prior to January 15, 2016. For the period from January 15, 2016, he is not eligible for schedular TDIU but may be eligible for extraschedular TDIU.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sciatic nerve paralysis of the left and right lower extremities have been granted, but as these issues are now resolved, there is no remaining case or controversy.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability was rated at 10% from July 9, 2008 to October 18, 2012 and upgraded to 30% thereafter. The left upper extremity radiculopathy was initially rated at 10%, but increased to 40% in April 2015 for the right upper extremity radiculopathy.,A separate rating of 50% was granted for the right upper extremity radiculopathy from July 9, 2008 to April 17, 2015 and in excess of 40% thereafter.