The Veteran's petition to reopen his claim for service connection of a right shoulder condition was granted. His initial rating for radiculopathy, right lower extremity, was increased from 10% to 20%. The earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and mood disorder due to chronic pain with depressive features were granted. However, the earlier effective date for DDD thoracolumbar spine was denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran presented new evidence that established a current right shoulder condition which had not been previously considered in his previous claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD) of Thoracolumbar Spine, Left Lower Extremity Radiculopathy, Mood Disorder due to Chronic Pain with Depressive Features, Radiculopathy of Right Lower Extremity, Right Shoulder Condition
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- December 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19191514
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,820 · 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 19191514.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for right and left lower extremity radiculopathy are being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his condition, without considering the ameliorative effects of any medication he uses.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy has been granted a 30 percent disability rating since November 29, 2021.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current right shoulder condition or neck condition, and therefore service connection for these conditions is denied. The claims of service connection for a neck condition as secondary to a service-connected right wrist condition and for bilateral hearing loss are remanded due to insufficient evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's erectile dysfunction is likely due to his service-connected lumbar spine and radiculopathy conditions, with tramadol use possibly causing the condition by October 25, 2012. The effective date for ED will be remanded.,Due to the inextricably intertwined nature of the issues, including the need to determine if tramadol caused ED prior to August 30, 2013, the SMC issue is also remanded.
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