The Board dismissed some claims for increased ratings and denied others. It granted a rating of 40 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy and TDIU from February 5, 2021, through June 9, 2021. The Board also remanded claims for an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for fecal urgency/incontinence and SMC based upon the need for aid and attendance/housebound.
The deciding factor: The decision was based on procedural defects and the spurious nature of some decisions due to concurrent review under both legacy and AMA systems.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative arthritis of the spine with intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS) and spondylolisthesis, left lower extremity radiculopathy associated with degenerative arthritis of the spine with IVDS and spondylolisthesis, major depressive disorder (MDD), mid back scar, post lumbar laminectomy, urinary urgency/incontinence, fecal urgency/incontinence, right lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25003525
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 882 · 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 A25003525.
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
The Veteran's appeals were dismissed due to the death of the appellant. The issues related to service connection for various conditions and disability ratings.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability.
- Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates for the grant of service connection for middle and index trigger finger/stenosing tenosynovitis of the right hand, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and right lower extremity radiculopathy. The earliest effective date is June 30, 2012, for the right hand condition and April 22, 2016, for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for lumbar spine degenerative arthritis and DDD, as well as right and left lower extremity radiculopathy secondary to the now service-connected lumbar spine condition. The decision is based on a finding of relative equipoise in the evidence regarding whether these conditions are related to service.
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