The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral ear disability, including as due to exposure to Agent Orange, is being remanded for additional development and consideration.
The deciding factor: The recent VA examination was inadequate for rating purposes and the presence of a current disorder in the left ear requires further medical opinion regarding its etiology.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral ear disability, otitis externa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 22, 2009
- Citation
- 0919444
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 0919444.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and entitlement to a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities. The Board found that there was no evidence of in-service onset or association with service, and concluded that the Veteran's current sleep apnea is not related to his PTSD. For the TDIU claim, the Board determined that the Veteran's service-connected conditions did not prevent him from securing and maintaining gainful employment.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral ear disability, excluding skin-related manifestations of lupus, finding no current disability and thus not meeting one of the three requirements for service connection.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for various disability ratings have been dismissed due to his death. The right eye dyscoria and PTSD issues were pursued under both the Legacy Appeal system and the AMA simultaneously, but these issues are now included in the dismissal.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for peritoneal adhesions following injury or surgery of the stomach and bilateral ear disability was withdrawn by the Veteran.
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