The Veteran's vertigo was not related to service, and the claim for service connection is denied.,The Veteran's lumbar spine disability does not meet the criteria for a higher rating under the General Rating Formula or DeLuca considerations. The claim for an increased rating remains denied.,The Veteran's right lower extremity radiculopathy has been rated at 20 percent and the claim for an initial rating in excess of this is denied.,Service connection for right ear hearing loss is remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding its etiology.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that the Veteran's vertigo was related to service, as his symptoms resolved prior to discharge and are more likely attributable to post-service conditions.,The Veteran's lumbar spine disability did not result in unfavorable ankylosis or meet criteria for higher ratings under DeLuca considerations. The claim remains denied.,The right lower extremity radiculopathy has been rated at 20 percent, and the evidence does not support a finding of more severe incomplete paralysis warranting a higher rating.,There is insufficient evidence to determine if the Veteran's right ear hearing loss was caused by service. The claim for service connection is remanded.
- Claimed conditions
- Vertigo, Lumbar spondylolisthesis, Right lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 19, 2020
- Citation
- 20074455
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted an effective date of July 31, 2012, for TDIU and October 22, 2012, for service connection of left and right lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Denied
The appeal for higher ratings and effective dates for various conditions was denied, with the exception of left and right lower extremity radiculopathy which were granted an earlier effective date.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbar spine disability, as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left foot crush injury, and sciatic radiculopathy of both lower extremities, also secondary to the newly service-connected lumbar spine disability. The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for depressive disorder with unspecified anxiety disorder and a compensable rating for allergic rhinitis.
- Denied
The Board denied increased ratings for various disabilities and granted earlier effective dates for service connection of scars, but denied an earlier effective date for individual unemployability.
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