The Board remanded the case for further development to obtain a retrospective medical opinion addressing functional loss during flareups and with repeated use over time prior to June 2021, as the previous opinions did not provide sufficient information regarding the Veteran's functional loss.
The deciding factor: The requested opinion was not adequate due to the examiner's inability to estimate additional functional loss without directly observing the Veteran under specific circumstances, which is contrary to court guidelines.
- Claimed conditions
- herniated disc of the lumbar spine, right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability, right lower extremity femoral nerve disability, left lower extremity sciatic nerve disability, left lower extremity femoral nerve disability, bilateral radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 9, 2025
- Citation
- 25008998
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,990 · Granted: 35% (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 25008998.
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 the claim for TDIU prior to October 18, 2018 due to a lack of evidence showing that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew all pending appeals, including those for increased ratings and service connection claims. The appeal is dismissed as a result.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a right lower extremity sciatic nerve disability as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected back disability, but denied service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome, restless leg syndrome of both legs, and dermatosis of the legs.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, a back disability, bilateral upper and lower extremity nerve disabilities, chronic fatigue syndrome, and GERD as there was no evidence of a current disability or a nexus to service.
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