Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2018

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims due to incomplete consideration of evidence and need for further examinations.

The Board has granted service connection for a short left leg but denied service connection for sciatica. The Veteran's short left leg was diagnosed during active duty and is presumed to have begun then, while his sciatica does not have a current diagnosis.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is granted as he has one disability rated at 40 percent or more and sufficient additional disability to bring his combined rating to 70 percent or more due to service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claim for increased SMC based on loss of use of a creative organ is denied. The claims for compensable rating for ejaculatory failure, 60 percent rating for urinary disability, and earlier effective dates for service connection are all denied. The claim for a higher rating for PTSD is also denied.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection of various lower and upper extremity disorders, as well as a left shoulder disorder, to allow for additional development. The Veteran's thoracolumbar spine disorder is found to be at least as likely as not related to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension is denied as the evidence does not support a finding that his current condition began during service or is related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.,The Veteran's claim for an evaluation higher than 10 percent for tinnitus is denied as there is no legal basis for such a benefit and the maximum schedular rating of 10 percent has been assigned.,The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates prior to October 22, 2015, for service connection for left lower extremity femoral nerve radiculopathy and left lower extremity sciatic nerve radiculopathy are denied as the evidence does not support a finding that these conditions began during service or within one year of service.,The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for bilateral hearing loss, lumbar spine degenerative arthritis, left lower extremity sciatic nerve radiculopathy, and left lower extremity femoral nerve radiculopathy are remanded as the most recent examination was in 2015.

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a sleep disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy due to insufficient evidence or conflicting opinions.

The Board has denied service connection for a left shoulder disability and dismissed claims for sleep apnea, hypertension. The Veteran's appeals of other issues have been withdrawn.

The Board has determined that the Veteran needs regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected disabilities, warranting special monthly compensation based on need for aid and attendance.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for new VA examinations, as the previous ones were not conducted at the correct address and no adequate notice was provided.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations to comply with the requirements of Correia v. McDonald.

The Veteran's service-connected osteoarthritis and spinal stenosis of the thoracolumbar spine, peripheral neuropathy (PN) RUE from June 26, 2015, and right lower extremity (RLE) lumbar radiculopathy are all rated at 40 percent. The Veteran's claim for a higher rating is denied.

The Board has remanded the claims for low back disability, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, TDIU, and SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance or housebound status due to inadequate examinations and incomplete development.

The Veteran's claims for right hip, left hip, and lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities have been denied. The effective date of service connection is fixed at the date of receipt of claim.,The Veteran's sleep apnea and hypertension disabilities were not incurred or aggravated by service.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for a herniated disc, entitlement to an initial compensable rating for bursitis, left knee and bursitis, right knee claimed as a bilateral knee condition prior to January 26, 2016 and in excess of 10 percent thereafter, and entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for sciatica of the left lower extremity.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection due to inadequate VA examinations in previous decisions. The Veteran is also being asked to provide information regarding flare-ups of his disabilities.

The Veteran's service connection claim for a scar due to cranium cyst removal is granted. The claims for telangiectasia matting on the nasal bridge, right shoulder pain and impingement, cervical radiculopathy with numbness of left upper extremity, and cervical radiculopathy with numbness of right upper extremity are all denied.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and effective dates have been denied. The appeals are remanded for further development.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment, warranting a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.

The Board has remanded the claims for a rating in excess of 20 percent for lumbar disc syndrome with radiculopathy, special monthly pension based on need for aid and attendance or housebound status, and whether the Veteran's countable income is excessive for VA non-service connected pension due to lack of information provided by the Veteran.