The Veteran's claim for an increased evaluation of his sciatic nerve impairment was denied. The effective date for the initial rating of 10% for RLE femoral nerve impairment is set at May 18, 2020, and the current 20% evaluation for RLE sciatic radiculopathy is effective July 29, 2024.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support a finding of an increase in disability prior to July 29, 2024.
- Claimed conditions
- sciatic radiculopathy, femoral nerve impairment
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- January 15, 2026
- Citation
- A26003906
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 A26003906.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeal because the January 2025 rating decision did not address the current ratings assigned for sciatic radiculopathy of the right and left lower extremities, as he had a valid pending Higher-Level Review request regarding these issues.
- Granted
The Veteran's RLE radiculopathy was granted a 40 percent disability rating, effective from May 9, 2016.,The Veteran's LLE radiculopathy was granted a 20 percent disability rating, effective from May 9, 2016.
- Granted
The Veteran's LLE and RLE sciatic radiculopathy, as well as her RLE femoral radiculopathy have been granted initial 20 percent ratings since March 15, 2022.
- Granted
The Veteran's right and left lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy were granted a rating of 40 percent each, effective March 28, 2013.
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