The Veteran's claims for increased ratings of bilateral lower extremity radiculopathies and entitlement to TDIU prior to February 15, 2018 are remanded due to inadequate retrospective medical opinions.
The deciding factor: The Board found the previous medical opinions insufficient and requires another opinion to determine the severity of the Veteran's service-connected radiculopathies during the entire period on appeal.
- Claimed conditions
- right lower extremity radiculopathy (femoral), right lower extremity radiculopathy (sciatic), left lower extremity radiculopathy (femoral)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2022
- Citation
- 22069839
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 22069839.
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 right lower extremity radiculopathy was granted a 20 percent rating effective October 13, 2010. The appeal for higher ratings and earlier effective dates were denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection for lumbar degenerative arthritis with sacroiliitis, left and right lower extremity radiculopathy were granted effective October 14, 2008. The issues of TDIU and DEA are remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy (femoral and sciatic) has been granted, with a disability rating of 20 percent effective December 21, 2020.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection and increased ratings, resulting in their dismissal.
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