The Board remands the claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy to obtain a new VA examination to clarify the current severity of the Veteran's conditions.
The deciding factor: Remand is necessary due to unclear etiology opinions regarding the Veteran's additional nerve diagnoses, necessitating further clarification from an examiner.
- Claimed conditions
- left lower extremity (LLE) radiculopathy, right lower extremity (RLE) radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2023
- Citation
- 23000039
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 Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy from April 3, 2023 onward, but denied higher ratings prior to that date. Service connection was also granted for alcohol use disorder as secondary to PTSD with traumatic brain injury.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the issues of entitlement to earlier effective dates for RLE and LLE radiculopathy service connection awards, finding that the AOJ failed to reconsider these claims under 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(c) after receipt of relevant official service department records. The Board remanded for a VA medical opinion to determine whether the radiculopathy onset occurred prior to September 15, 1999.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for lumbar spine degenerative disc disease with intervertebral disc syndrome, left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, as well as special monthly compensation and total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied restoration of the 20 percent ratings for cervical spine strain, thoracolumbar strain, and right lower extremity radiculopathy due to improvement in the disabilities under ordinary conditions of life and work.
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