The veteran's service-connected disabilities, including loss of use of the left foot and cauda equina syndrome, have rendered him unable to walk without assistance. The Board finds that he meets the criteria for specially adapted housing but not a special home adaptation grant.
The deciding factor: The veteran's severe disability due to his service-connected conditions precludes him from walking unaided, meeting the requirement for specially adapted housing eligibility.
- Claimed conditions
- loss of use of left foot, residuals of a laminectomy and diskectomy of the lumbar spine with cauda equina syndrome, bladder incontinence, bowel incontinence, residuals of an injury to the right arm and thumb
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- March 8, 2002
- Citation
- 0202253
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0202253.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including renal failure, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, blackout spells, swelling of the eyelids, diminished eyesight, sleep deprivation, and bladder incontinence. The Board also denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for left ankle tendonitis associated with residual scar.
- Dismissed
The appeals for a compensable evaluation for bladder incontinence and bowel incontinence have been withdrawn and dismissed.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of April 24, 2014, for service connection for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, a rating of 40 percent from April 24, 2014 to August 13, 2020 for the back disability, and a separate rating for bowel incontinence associated with the back disability.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, but granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
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