The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is rated at 40 percent throughout the pendency of this claim. Ratings for his left and right lower extremity sciatic nerve disabilities are also granted.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran’s forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine was limited to 30 degrees or less, meeting the criteria for a 40 percent rating under the general rating formula for diseases and injuries of the spine.
- Claimed conditions
- Status Post Avulsion Fracture of the Transverse Process L1-3 and Herniated Nucleus Pulposus L5-S1 (Lumbar Spine Disability), Left Lower Extremity Sciatic Nerve Disability, Right Lower Extremity Sciatic Nerve Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- April 12, 2021
- Citation
- 21021326
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 21021326.
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 Veteran's PTSD is rated at 70 percent effective from December 30, 2020. A TDIU is granted as of December 30, 2020.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for sinusitis, bilateral hearing loss, left and right knee disabilities, and right and left lower extremity sciatic nerve disabilities. However, the Veteran's lumbosacral strain was granted service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are being remanded due to the need for new VA examinations to assess the severity of his service-connected disabilities, including Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Degenerative Arthritis of the Spine with IVDS and Pars Defect with Anterolisthesis of L5-L1 (spine disorder), right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability, right lower extremity femoral nerve disability, left lower extremity sciatic nerve disability, and left lower extremity femoral nerve disability. The TDIU claim is also being remanded as it is intrinsically intertwined with the other issues on appeal.
- Granted
The Veteran's claims for effective dates of service connection for left and right lower extremity sciatic nerve disabilities, as well as increased ratings for his lumbar spine disability, are granted. The case is remanded to obtain additional VA medical records and to schedule the Veteran for a new VA examination.
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