The Veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity were denied effective December 3, 2013.
The deciding factor: The claim was received after one year from separation from service and no earlier claims were submitted within a year prior to the date of receipt of the claim for increase.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- May 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19139212
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,162 · Granted: 21% (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 19139212.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
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 a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his physical limitations could be accommodated by sedentary employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity and remanded the claim for adjustment disorder. The Veteran's radiculopathy is not shown to be related to his military service, while his adjustment disorder may be related to civilian life.
- Granted
The Veteran's back disability (degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine) is granted as service connected.,The Veteran's bilateral lower extremity radiculopathies (RLE and LLE sciatic radiculopathy) are granted as secondary to her back disability.,The Veteran's chronic sinusitis is remanded due to a lack of verification of the TERA exposure.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all service connection claims and rating determinations due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.
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