The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining additional medical records and providing a retrospective opinion regarding the Veteran's L5-S1 degenerative joint disease.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the issues of increased ratings for lumbar radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities are inextricably intertwined with the issue on appeal of entitlement to an increased rating for the L5-S1 degenerative joint disease, and thus remanded these issues.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease, L5-S1, Lumbar Radiculopathy, Right Lower Extremity, Lumbar Radiculopathy, Left Lower Extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 10, 2021
- Citation
- 21028047
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 21028047.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is related to in-service noise exposure.,The Veteran has a diagnosis of degenerative arthritis and DDD other than IVDS of the cervical spine, which he experienced symptoms since service. The issue was granted as direct service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for further development and adjudication due to inadequate medical opinions provided by VA examiners in previous examinations. The Veteran's claims of increased ratings for his service-connected low back disability, lumbar radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, and lumbar radiculopathy of the left lower extremity are being remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's degenerative joint disease, L5-S1 has been granted a 40 percent disability rating.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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