The appeal for a rating in excess of 20 percent for left lower extremity radiculopathy was denied, and the Board remanded the issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a higher rating as the Veteran's symptoms most closely approximated moderate incomplete paralysis, which is already rated at 20 percent. A remand was necessary to obtain private treatment records and a VA examination for PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- Radiculopathy of the left lower extremity (LLE)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- February 27, 2025
- Citation
- 25002918
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,162 · Granted: 21% (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 25002918.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted an initial disability rating of 20 percent for radiculopathy of the right lower extremity and left lower extremity, finding moderate incomplete paralysis of the sciatic nerves.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his back disability and radiculopathy of both lower extremities, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on current functional impairment or incapacitating episodes.
- Denied
The appeal for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent left peroneal nerve impairment and the propriety of separate ratings for radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities were denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for increased ratings for left shoulder strain, DDD of the lumbar spine, radiculopathy of both lower extremities, and TDIU due to insufficient evidence regarding flare-ups and baseline severity.
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