The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine, right and left lower extremity radiculopathy affecting the sciatic nerve, was granted with a 40 percent disability rating effective February 1, 2007. The appeal for earlier effective dates is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's symptoms did not warrant an increased rating prior to February 1, 2007 and from April 19, 2016 onwards.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic arthritis of the lumbar spine, Right lower extremity radiculopathy affecting the sciatic nerve, Left lower extremity radiculopathy affecting the sciatic nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- October 26, 2020
- Citation
- 20069150
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 793 · Granted: 28% (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 20069150.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted separate 20 percent ratings for right and left lower extremity radiculopathy affecting the sciatic nerve, but denied higher ratings for right and left anterior tibial (deep peroneal) nerve involvement.
- Denied
The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's service-connected disabilities and denied service connection for additional claimed conditions.
- Denied
The appeal was denied for an initial disability rating in excess of 30 percent for peripheral vestibular damage with vertigo of the left ear, and remanded for further evaluation of other conditions.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for PTSD is denied, and their lumbar spine disability remains at a 40 percent rating. The appeal to reopen the depressive disorder claim is dismissed.
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