The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including notifying the Veteran of his right to submit alternate sources of evidence in support of his previously denied claim for service connection for a low back disorder and claims for service connection for a renal disorder (originally claimed as chronic nephritis) and vagotomy.
The deciding factor: The Board found that VA's duty to assist was heightened due to the unavailability of service records, and thus advised the Veteran of his right to submit alternate sources of evidence in support of his claims.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disorder, renal disorder (originally claimed as chronic nephritis), vagotomy
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 11, 2009
- Citation
- 0917555
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 0917555.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 claims for a VA examination and medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's low back disorder and bilateral hip disorder are related to his service-connected Crohn's disease.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for low back disorder, skin disorder, tongue condition, right chest costochondritis, and right hand shaking due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that side effects from prescribed medications contributed substantially and materially to his accidental motorcycle collision resulting in fatal injuries.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for dermatitis/eczema, sleep apnea, a psychiatric disorder (including MDD and PTSD), hypertension, COPD, low back disorder, and prostate cancer are all granted. The Board found that the evidence supported these determinations based on direct service connection.
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