The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to evaluate the severity of his service-connected left thumb disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Veteran testified that he experiences pain in his left thumb due to both joint issues and scar. The current examinations did not fully address this issue.
- Claimed conditions
- osteoarthritis and tendonitis of the left thumb, scar of the left thumb
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2014
- Citation
- 1400656
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 1400656.
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 Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining service personnel records and medical records from his in-service treatment at Great Lakes Naval Hospital. A VA examination will be conducted to determine the nature and etiology of any left thumb disorders, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and scar of the left thumb.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his low back disability, current severity of his service-connected left thumb scar and digital nerve damage, and current severity of his bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran also requested a Travel Board hearing.
- Denied
The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, a nervous disorder to include depression, and compensable ratings for residuals of a scar of the left thumb and residuals of a fracture of the left ankle. The evidence did not establish that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by service.
- Denied
The veteran's death was not due to his own willful misconduct, but he did not meet the criteria for DIC under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 as he was not rated as totally disabled for a period of at least ten years immediately preceding his death.
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