The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for radiculopathy of both lower extremities and lumbar spine disability. The case is being remanded to obtain a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the lumbar spine disability.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the December 2021 VA examiner's opinion regarding additional functional impairment was inadequate, as it did not consider the Veteran's reports of additional limitations during periods of repeated use and flare-ups. The remand is necessary to obtain a new examination with proper consideration of these factors.
- Claimed conditions
- radiculopathy, left lower extremity, radiculopathy, right lower extremity, lumbar strain with degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, degenerative arthritis, and spinal stenosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 7, 2024
- Citation
- A24063880
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 913 · Granted: 41% (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 A24063880.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for tinnitus, lower back condition, radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, and bilateral hearing loss.,There is no evidence linking these conditions to service.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all appeal issues as the Veteran withdrew his appeals prior to a decision being made.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for thoracolumbar spine and secondary service connection for radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions are related to the Veteran's active-duty service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for individual unemployability (TDIU) and service connection for sinusitis and abdominal pain, residuals, removal of colon, severe constipation were dismissed due to duty to assist errors found in the August 2021 rating decision.,Residuals of a menstrual disorder, to include status post hysterectomy; residuals, removal of gallbladder; GERD with acid reflux disease and epigastric pain; lumbar spine condition; radiculopathy, right lower extremity; radiculopathy, left lower extremity; dry eye syndrome; left knee pain; right shoulder pain; left shoulder pain; and right ankle condition were all granted.
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