Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2025

The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and dismissed the claims for an earlier effective date and a left lower extremity sciatic nerve disability.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of May 1, 2018, for the award of service connection for radiculopathy, right lower extremity, was granted. The appeal for an earlier effective date for TDIU was dismissed as moot.

The appeal of the proposed reduction in ratings for lumbosacral strain and left lower extremity radiculopathy was dismissed due to procedural errors.

The Board grants the Veteran's appeal for a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) based on his service-connected conditions, including PTSD with TBI residuals, headaches, low back conditions with left lower extremity radiculopathy, and tinnitus.

The Board granted earlier effective dates for the awards of service connection and ratings, including IVDS with degenerative arthritis, right and left lower extremity radiculopathy, major depressive disorder (MDD), and eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA).

The Board granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, but denied an increased disability rating for the Veteran's herniated nucleus pulposus with post-traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine.

The Board granted service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and denied increased ratings for the lumbar spine condition, right lower extremity radiculopathy, earlier effective dates, and special monthly compensation.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased rating and service connection, finding no evidence of current disabilities related to his active service.

The Board granted a 10 percent rating for the Veteran's painful scar associated with his cervical spine disability from December 4, 2019, and remanded other issues for further development.

The Board dismissed the issues of the propriety of proposed reductions in ratings for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, as the November 2024 rating decision was not a final agency action.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, remanding some issues for further development.

The Board granted service connection for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, radiculopathy impacting both lower extremities on a secondary basis to the back disability, and right knee degenerative arthritis.

The Board granted service connection for several conditions, including lumbar condition and PTSD, with specific ratings and effective dates.

The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for left and right lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy, as the evidence did not support a finding of moderate incomplete paralysis.

The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's back disability, radiculopathy of both lower extremities, limitation of pronation and flexion of the right elbow, and scarring, but granted a 40 percent rating from March 26, 2024 to September 17, 2024.

The Board granted an initial 20 percent rating prior to September 17, 2020, and a 40 percent rating from September 17, 2020, for the Veteran's left lower extremity radiculopathy.

The Veteran was granted an earlier effective date of October 1, 1997, for the award of service connection for residuals of a gunshot wound to the right foot. The motion for revision or reversal on the basis of CUE of a December 1997 rating decision that denied service connection for a right foot GSW was dismissed. An earlier effective date for service connection for radiculopathy of the RLE with femoral nerve impairment (claimed as right leg nerve condition) and entitlement to service connection for a right knee, hip, or elbow condition were denied.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for upper and lower extremity radiculopathy due to a need for additional evidence.

The Board denied service connection for IBS, chronic fatigue syndrome, and increased ratings for bilateral foot conditions and bilateral hearing loss. The TBI, cervical spine, left knee, right knee, lower left extremity neurological condition, lower right extremity neurological condition, and neuropathy of the right ankle residuals were remanded.

The Board denied service connection for a deviated nasal septum and denied increased ratings for the back, right lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy, and left lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy. The Board also denied earlier effective dates for chronic sinusitis and an increased rating for the back disability.