The Board found that the veteran's additional left lower extremity disability was not incurred as a result of VA carelessness, negligence, or similar fault. The evidence showed the veteran consented to the treatment and the disability was within the known risks of lumbar surgery.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that foot drop is a known risk of lumbar surgery and thus not indicative of negligence on VA's part.
- Claimed conditions
- left lower extremity weakness, left foot drop
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 29, 2005
- Citation
- 0532171
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 0532171.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for the Veteran's lumbar spine herniated disc, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and left foot drop due to a delay in VA providing timely neurosurgical care.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional medical opinions are needed to address the Veteran's claims for service connection related to his bilateral hips, lumbar disability, and lower extremity radiculopathy. The appeals are being remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to issues related to a TDIU and an increased evaluation for left Achilles tendonitis. The Veteran's service-connected conditions have rendered her unable to work during certain periods, but further review is needed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for sleep disability, higher initial ratings for left lower extremity weakness and speech (aphonia) and swallowing difficulties, and an increased rating for thrombosis, transient ischemic attack with left upper extremity weakness due to outstanding private treatment records and inadequate examination reports.
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