Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2026

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for hiatal hernia, deviated septum, left shoulder condition, umbilical hernia, and left upper extremity radiculopathy as there is no persuasive evidence that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection of tinnitus, hypertension, sleep apnea, lumbar arthropathy (lower back), numbness of chin and mouth, cervical radiculopathy, left, cervical radiculopathy, right, right lower lumbar radiculopathy, and left lower lumbar radiculopathy as the Veteran withdrew his appeal in writing.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's lumbar spine condition, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy on a secondary basis as these conditions are proximately due to his service-connected right knee disability.

The Board has granted service connection for right upper radiculopathy and left upper radiculopathy, but denied service connection for right lower radiculopathy and left lower radiculopathy as secondary to a thoracolumbar spine condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) because his service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for eligibility to specially adapted housing (SAH) and special home adaptation (SHA) due to unclear findings regarding whether his service-connected disabilities result in loss of use of one or more upper and/or lower extremities.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was granted effective February 26, 2024. The increase in disability during the one-year period prior to this date rendered him unemployable.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is rated as noncompensable, and the Board will not address higher ratings.,Service connection for left upper extremity radiculopathy, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and OSA are remanded due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology. Service connection for acquired psychiatric disorder is remanded due to inadequate consideration of new evidence.,The Veteran's right ankle disability remains remanded as no current disabilities were diagnosed during the VA examination.

The Board has restored the Veteran's disability ratings for radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, including sciatic and femoral nerves, to their original levels on July 1, 2020.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been granted. The Board has remanded the cases of IVDS, BLE radiculopathy, cervical spine mass, BUE radiculopathy, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus.

The Veteran's right lower extremity radiculopathy resulted in moderate paralysis of the sciatic nerve, warranting a 20% rating.

The Board dismissed the appeal because the appellant withdrew their appeal for increased ratings of cervical spine disability, radiculopathy disabilities, and an acquired psychiatric disability.

The Veteran's gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is granted as secondary to his service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).,The Veteran's left knee pain and instability are granted, with the Board resolving the benefit of doubt in favor of the Veteran.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including allergic rhinitis, left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, erectile dysfunction, a right wrist disability, and a left wrist disability. The evidence does not support these claims.

The Veteran's cervical spine disability is granted as service connected.,The Veteran's radiculopathy of the right upper extremity, secondary to a cervical spine disability, is also granted as service connected.,The Veteran's right wrist disability and left knee disabilities are remanded for further development.,The Veteran's right ankle disability is remanded for further development.,The Veteran's vitamin D deficiency is remanded for further development.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of left leg sciatica, and thus service connection for this condition is denied. The issues of service connection for degenerative cervical disease (neck disability), right upper extremity cervical radiculopathy as secondary to neck disability, lumbar spine L4/5 degenerative disc disease (back disability), and sinusitis are remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection have been denied. The rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus is denied, as the evidence does not support a higher rating under the applicable criteria. The claim for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is also denied due to lack of evidence supporting a higher rating based on audiometric results. Service connection for hypertension and bilateral foot fungus are granted with effective dates from May 19, 2020, to August 9, 2022, respectively. The Veteran's claims for service connection regarding left knee pain (status post arthroscopy), right knee pain (status post arthroscopy), low back disability (degenerative arthritis of the spine), left shoulder pain, and right shoulder pain are all granted with effective dates from August 10, 2022. The Veteran's claims for service connection regarding left leg shooting pain and radiculopathy secondary to low back disability and right leg shooting pain and radiculopathy secondary to low back disability remain pending.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unemployable, and his TDIU claim is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions rendered him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation, leading to the grant of TDIU effective May 25, 2019.

The Board has granted service connection for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, finding that the Veteran's current disabilities are directly related to her active service.