The Veteran's left ankle disorder is granted service connection.,The non-congenital lumbar spine disorders, including chronic lumbar sprain, degenerative disc disease, and lumbar spinal stenosis, are granted service connection. The radiculopathy of the bilateral lower extremities is also granted service connection.,Bertolli’s syndrome (a congenital lumbar spine disorder) is not addressed as it requires further clarification regarding whether it is a defect or a disease.
The deciding factor: The left ankle disorder was found to be related to the Veteran's in-service injury and treatment, with progression noted.,The non-congenital lumbar spine disorders are considered service-connected due to their relationship to the Veteran's in-service injuries and his already service-connected hip femoral stress fractures. The radiculopathy is also linked to these conditions.,Bertolli’s syndrome requires further clarification as it may be a congenital defect or disease, which would affect its eligibility for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle disorder, non-congenital lumbar spine disorder (chronic lumbar sprain, degenerative disc disease, and lumbar spinal stenosis), bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2019
- Citation
- 19140018
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,569 · Granted: 26% (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 19140018.
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
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