The Veteran's deviated septum disability does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating.,There is insufficient evidence to establish service connection for his low back disability, left foot drop disability, or right lower extremity sciatica.,VA has remanded the case due to inadequate examination in assessing the severity of the Veteran's left ankle disability.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not show that the Veteran’s deviated septum results in more than 50 percent obstruction of the nasal passage on both sides or complete obstruction on one side.,There is no direct evidence linking the low back, left foot drop, and right lower extremity sciatica disabilities to service. The VA examiner found no evidence of ongoing treatment for a back condition after military service until approximately 30 years later in 2014.,The VA examination did not include range of motion testing as required by Correia v. McDonald (2016).
- Claimed conditions
- deviated septum, low back disability, left foot drop disability, right lower extremity sciatica
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 17, 2019
- Citation
- A19002049
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,548 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A19002049.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that remand is needed for the Veteran's claims due to duty to assist errors, including clarification of periods of service and obtaining relevant records. The Veteran will be afforded new medical examinations for each claimed disability.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims of right shoulder disability and low back disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection of a low back disability was granted with an effective date of January 9, 2018. The Board accepted her November 21, 2019 VA Form 20-0996 as a valid opt-in of the April 2019 SOC into the modernized review system.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal concerning diabetes and a low back disability has been dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
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