The Veteran's claims for effective dates earlier than December 3, 2020 for the award of service connection for radiculopathy of the lower extremities are being remanded due to errors in VA's pre-decisional duty to assist.
The deciding factor: VA failed to provide adequate assistance and information during the initial review process.
- Claimed conditions
- radiculopathy of the right lower extremity sciatic nerve, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity sciatic nerve, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity femoral nerve, radiation of the left lower extremity femoral nerve, radiation of the right lower extremity ilioinguinal nerve, radiation of the left lower extremity ilioinguinal nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 23, 2023
- Citation
- A23029265
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 A23029265.
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 service-connected traumatic arthritis of the spine with degenerative disc disease, IVDS, spinal stenosis, and disc herniation is rated at 40 percent. The effective date for this rating remains pending as it was granted in a September 2023 decision.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremity sciatic nerve as secondary to service-connected lumbar disability, and for left knee strain. The Veteran's claims are remanded for additional examinations and opinions regarding chronic fatigue with memory loss (CFS) and right knee disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for ratings in excess of 10 percent for radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremity sciatic and femoral nerves due to a duty to assist error regarding private treatment records.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all issues related to service connection and rating for various conditions, including migraines, traumatic brain injury, tinnitus, facial scarring, back disability, radiculopathy of the lower extremities, acne, chest and back scars, and pseudofolliculitis barbae. The Veteran withdrew his appeal prior to a decision being made.
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