The Veteran's back condition is granted as service connected.,His bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy involving the sciatic nerve is also granted as secondary to his now service-connected back condition. The issue of polyuria and proteinuria (urinary condition) is remanded for further review.,Service connection for polyuria and proteinuria as secondary to obstructive sleep apnea is remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's STRs show recurrent back pain during service, which was noted by the VA examiner in August 2022. The Board finds that his current degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine is present and service connected.,The bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy involving the sciatic nerve is found to be secondary to his now service-connected back condition due to a VA examination's opinion linking it to his degenerative arthritis.,The Veteran's urinary issues are remanded as there was insufficient explanation in the August 2022 examiner's opinion regarding whether they are related to his sleep apnea and if his sleep apnea aggravates them.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine (back condition), Bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy involving the sciatic nerve, Polyuria and proteinuria (urinary condition)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2024
- Citation
- A24083221
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 A24083221.
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 back condition, which is rated under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine (General Rating Formula), has been granted a disability rating of 40 percent since November 2, 2010.
- Granted
The Veteran's low back disability is rated at 40 percent since November 13, 2006 and higher ratings are denied.,Separate 40 percent ratings for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy have been granted effective June 3, 2011, with even higher 60 percent ratings since May 20, 2015.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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