The Board has ordered the case to be remanded for further development due to inadequate opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's low back disorder, left hip degenerative joint disease, and hammertoes of the right foot.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner was unable to provide a clear opinion without resorting to speculation regarding the etiology of these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic low back disorder, bilateral foot disorder other than bilateral pes planus with plantar warts, left leg disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2010
- Citation
- 1001719
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 1001719.
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 remands the service connection claims for various conditions due to a lack of compliance with previous remand directives and inadequate medical opinions.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple disorders, including left and right knee disorders, hypertension, left hand, foot, leg, and arm disorders, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), as there was no evidence of in-service incurrence or a nexus to service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the veteran's claimed conditions as there was no evidence of a current disability, in-service incurrence or aggravation, and no nexus between the current complaints and service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions, including bilateral flat foot, left and right knee disorders, left leg disorder, right hip disorder, prostate disorder, lower back disorder, and bilateral lower extremity neuropathy/radiculopathy, to cure pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
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