The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional examination and opinion regarding his service-connected lumbar spine disability, as well as his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The decision was remanded because the VA examinations of record were inadequate in considering the impact of the appellant’s reported flare-ups and functional loss.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar disc disease status post right L4-L5 hemilaminectomy and discectomy with right L5 foraminotomy, right leg sciatica, left leg sciatica
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 7, 2019
- Citation
- 19101394
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,987 · Granted: 15% (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 19101394.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU due to inadequate examinations, including those related to his lumbar spine and right leg sciatica. The claims are being returned for further examination and opinion.
- Dismissed
The appeal regarding the issues of entitlement to an increased rating for right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome and service connection for various conditions was dismissed due to concurrent election.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a back disability and right leg sciatica, finding that the Veteran's back disability caused his obesity, which in turn led to his back disability (via intermediate step), and that his back disability is also directly related to his hypertension. The right leg sciatica was found to be secondary to the back disability.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.