The Veteran's back disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and neurological impairment of the groin have been granted service connection. An initial rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus has been denied. An initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss has also been denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's symptoms were found to more nearly approximate the criteria for a minimum, initial 40 percent rating for his back disability and an initial 40 percent rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy effective October 21, 2014. Service connection was granted for right lower extremity radiculopathy and neurological impairment of the groin as secondary to the service-connected back disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disability, Left lower extremity radiculopathy, Neurological impairment of the groin, Right lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- February 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19114537
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,217 · Granted: 46% (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 19114537.
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 the Veteran's claim for service connection of a back disability, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between his current condition and active duty service.
- Granted
The Board has granted effective dates of July 10, 2024 for service connection for PTSD, lumbar strain, and left lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for a back disability due to incomplete service records and failure to consider all available evidence, including in-service treatment records from F.E. Warren Air Force Base.
- Denied
The Veteran's right lower extremity radiculopathy was evaluated at a 20 percent rating, and the Board found that it did not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation.
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