The Veteran's claim for an effective date of February 14, 2022, for the 70 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an effective date of March 27, 2022, for service connection for sciatic radiculopathy of the right lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an effective date of March 27, 2022, for service connection for sciatic radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of August 16, 2023, for the 10 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected varicose veins of the right lower extremity is granted.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of August 16, 2023, for the 10 percent non-initial staged rating for service-connected varicose veins of the left lower extremity is granted.
The deciding factor: All issues on appeal were continuously prosecuted by the Veteran since their respective dates and all reasonable doubt was resolved in favor of the Veteran.,The effective date for sciatic radiculopathy of the bilateral lower extremities was consistent with receipt of the claim, within one year prior to March 27, 2022.,There is no evidence of a factually ascertainable increase in severity of varicose veins in either lower extremity within one year prior to February 1, 2024.
- Claimed conditions
- adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood, sciatic radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, sciatic radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, varicose veins of the right lower extremity, varicose veins of the left lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2026
- Citation
- A26002125
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 A26002125.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the proposed reduction in disability rating for lumbar decompression and fusion with lumbosacral strain is dismissed. The Veteran's initial higher disability ratings for sciatic radiculopathy of both lower extremities are denied, but he is granted a TDIU.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood is granted a 50 percent evaluation, effective April 20, 2021. His right shoulder disability is also granted.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for an adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood, finding that her current condition is at least as likely as not related to her service. The decision encompasses all of her psychiatric disability picture.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU are remanded due to a duty-to-assist error in the previous VA examination, which did not discount the ameliorative effects of her pain medication. The case is also remanded for consideration of TDIU as part of the evaluation of her back disability.
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