The Board has remanded the claims for further development due to inconsistencies in previous opinions and need for an assessment without considering the ameliorative effects of pain medication.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's functioning needs to be assessed without the use of prescribed pain medications, as some opinions have relied on these medications' effects.
- Claimed conditions
- postoperative lumbar degenerative disc and joint disease with intervertebral disc syndrome, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity (RLE), rheumatoid arthritis of the left lower extremity (LLE)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 16, 2025
- Citation
- 25000668
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 699 · Granted: 12% (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 25000668.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities prior to November 22, 2022.,The Board has also remanded the issue of service connection for a right foot disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's radiculopathy of the right lower extremity is granted a disability rating of 40 percent, but no higher. The initial compensable rating for hypertension and TDIU are also granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss disability is granted as service-connected.,The Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity (LLE), and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity (RLE) are all granted as secondary to his now service-connected lumbar spine disability. The bilateral foot plantar fasciitis is also granted as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for plantar fasciitis, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity (LLE), and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity (RLE) due to a duty to assist error in obtaining adequate opinions regarding causation and aggravation.
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