The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU were denied. The Board found that the Veteran is not entitled to an increased rating greater than 20 percent for his service-connected lumbar spine arthritis prior to December 21, 2015 but is entitled to a 20 percent disability rating from December 21, 2015 and a 20 percent disability rating for left lower extremity radiculopathy. The Veteran's claim for TDIU was also denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show that the Veteran’s lumbar spine arthritis or left lower extremity radiculopathy warranted an increased rating greater than 20 percent at any point in time, even considering functional loss due to pain and flare-ups. The Board found no evidence of unfavorable ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine for a higher rating.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine arthritis with degenerative disc disease (DDD), left lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 13, 2021
- Citation
- 21063145
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,249 · Granted: 37% (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 21063145.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and denied the claims for right knee disability, erectile dysfunction, GERD, sleep apnea, and hypertension. The decision is remanded for further action on these issues.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates for the grant of service connection for middle and index trigger finger/stenosing tenosynovitis of the right hand, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy. The earliest effective date is June 30, 2012, for the right hand condition and April 22, 2016, for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have left lower extremity radiculopathy or any related symptoms causing impairment in earning capacity during the appeal period, and therefore service connection for this condition is denied.
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