The Board granted a 40 percent evaluation for status post lumbar spinal fusion from April 25, 2023, to June 10, 2023, and denied increased evaluations for the other conditions.
The deciding factor: The functional impact of pain during flare-ups and with repeated use over time limited the Veteran's motion, but did not warrant a higher evaluation under the applicable criteria.
- Claimed conditions
- status post lumbar spinal fusion, lumbar spinal fusion surgical scar, incomplete paralysis of the right leg sciatic nerve, incomplete paralysis of the left leg sciatic nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2025
- Citation
- A25035809
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,614 · 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 A25035809.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
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 remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability, including status post lumbar and cervical spinal fusions, due to inadequate VA examination opinions. The case will be readjudicated after obtaining an addendum opinion from the June 2019 VA examiner or another appropriate clinician.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran's claim should be remanded for further development, including a VA examination to determine the etiology of his back disability and whether it is related to service.
- 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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