Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2017

The Veteran's service connection claim for PTSD is granted, with the Board finding that his current PTSD is related to his active service. The cervical spine disability, left arm radiculopathy disability, and migraine headache disability claims are remanded for further development.

The combined effects of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities make him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability has been granted service connection with an effective date of June 12, 2013.,The Veteran's radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities have each been granted a separate evaluation at 10 percent.

The Board has remanded the issues of an increased rating for the right knee disability and entitlement to a TDIU due to noncompliance with remand directives. The remaining claims have been addressed, but no SOC has been issued.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from obtaining or retaining substantially gainful employment, and thus does not meet the criteria for an extraschedular TDIU.

The Veteran's lumbar spine intervertebral disc syndrome and associated radiculopathy were rated at 20 percent from February 23, 2009, to September 23, 2015. Since then, a 40 percent rating has been granted for the entire period.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for right and left leg conditions, as well as a right foot disorder, are being remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding the diagnoses and etiology of these conditions. The VA is instructed to obtain additional medical records and conduct further examinations.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed for the Veteran's claims, including obtaining updated VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to assess his service-connected degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine and radiculopathy of the lower extremities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to obtain his SSA disability benefits records, VA medical records, and vocational rehabilitation file. The case will be reviewed after the development.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional examinations and updated medical records to determine the severity of his PTSD, Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, left eye keratitis, coronary heart disease, upper extremity radiculopathy, and lower extremity radiculopathy. The claims are also being reviewed for service connection based on secondary service connection.

The Board has requested an additional medical opinion and is now remanding the case for consideration of new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Veteran's low back disability was rated at 10 percent prior to November 18, 2011, and at 20 percent as of that date. A separate 10 percent rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy is granted.

The Veteran's combined rating has been 80 percent since June 21, 2016. However, he is gainfully employed in a fulltime position and his service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure and follow gainful employment.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him incapable of securing or following a substantially gainful occupation, and the Board finds that he is entitled to TDIU for the entire rating period on appeal.

The Board has determined that a separate rating of 20 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy associated with lumbar spine degenerative disc and joint disease is warranted from December 14, 2009 through May 27, 2014. The Veteran's symptoms during this period included moderate incomplete paralysis of the sciatic nerve.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and the Board has granted a TDIU on an extra-schedular basis.

The Veteran's radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve, right lower extremity, associated with degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine is currently rated at 20 percent from March 6, 2017. The Veteran's TDIU claim remains pending.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for SMC based on housebound status from June 1, 2007 to December 31, 2008 due to insufficient evidence showing a single service-connected disability rated at 100% and additional disabilities that would qualify him for SMC.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected low back strain with lumbar disc degeneration and left lower radiculopathy disability renders him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, warranting a TDIU.