The Board denied service connection for bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy as secondary to the thoracolumbar spine disability and denied a rating in excess of 40 percent for the thoracolumbar spine disability.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a finding that the Veteran's upper extremity radiculopathy was caused or aggravated by his service-connected thoracolumbar spine disability, nor did it establish that he had ankylosis of the entire thoracolumbar spine to warrant a higher rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy, Thoracolumbar spine disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 9, 2024
- Citation
- 24031665
Veterans Law Judge
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 24031665.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating of his cervical spine, thoracolumbar spine, left shoulder, right shoulder, upper extremity neurological, and lower extremity neurological disabilities due to inadequate VA medical examinations in March 2019 and January-May 2016. The new examinations must consider the Veteran's reported onset dates for his symptoms.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates of June 6, 2011 for the Veteran's service connection claims for right and left upper extremity cervical radiculopathy.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities cause the need for regular aid and attendance of another person, which is granted based on the evidence provided.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection of sinusitis is dismissed. The appeals for cervical spine disability, bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy, GERD, and migraine disability are remanded.
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