The Board has determined that there were duty to assist errors in the rating decisions for the Veteran's right and left lower extremity sciatic nerve disabilities, as well as his service-connected back disability. The cases are being remanded to obtain additional medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the previous medical opinions did not provide adequate rationale regarding whether the Veteran's sciatic nerve disabilities had their onset in service or were otherwise related to service, and also failed to address if they are caused or aggravated by his service-connected back disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability, Left lower extremity sciatic nerve disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 6, 2019
- Citation
- A19002581
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation A19002581.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the reduction of the Veteran's disability rating from 20 percent to 10 percent for right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability was proper, as evidenced by improvement in his ability to function under ordinary conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's low back disability was rated at 40% effective August 5, 2020. Prior to that date, the rating remained at 20%. The right and left sciatic nerve disabilities were each rated at 10% prior to April 4, 2020, and then increased to 20% thereafter.,The Board remanded the issue of service connection for memory loss due to new evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected incomplete paralysis of the sciatic nerve of the right lower extremity prior to January 11, 2020, and TDIU prior to June 19, 2015, was granted. The Veteran is now rated at 20% for this condition prior to January 11, 2020, and the claim of a higher rating remains pending. For the period prior to June 19, 2015, the Veteran's TDIU claim was granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran's right central facial palsy, aphasia, and right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability are not rated higher than their current levels.
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