The veteran's claims for earlier effective dates and higher ratings were denied. However, the veteran was granted a higher initial rating for degenerative arthritis of the spine with IVDS and lumbosacral strain on and after February 8, 2018.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the criteria for entitlement to earlier effective dates and higher ratings were not met based on the evidence of record.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative arthritis of the spine with intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS) and lumbosacral strain, left lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve, left lower extremity radiculopathy of the femoral nerve, right lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve, right lower extremity radiculopathy and peripheral neuropathy of the femoral nerve
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2025
- Citation
- A25000526
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,828 · Granted: 32% (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 A25000526.
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.
- Dismissed
Your initial evaluations for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve have been granted, but your appeal is dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed all issues on appeal as the May 2024 rating decision was a purely ministerial implementation of the April 2024 Board decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's cervical and lumbar spine disabilities, as well as their associated radiculopathy conditions, are remanded for further development. The fibromyalgia with headaches claim is also remanded due to a duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional evidence is needed to determine if the Veteran's service-connected RUE brachial plexus injury and lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve should be rated higher than their current noncompensable (0 percent) ratings.
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