The Board has ordered a remand to obtain an updated VA examination and consider the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral otitis media and bilateral otitis externa. The examination should address whether these conditions are related to his military service, including exposure to water during training.
The deciding factor: The examiner must provide opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's diagnosed ear conditions based on a review of his medical history and current symptoms.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral otitis media, bilateral otitis externa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2015
- Citation
- 1500153
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1500153.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for skin cancer and assigned a 40 percent disability rating for left shoulder strain, while denying service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, flatfoot bilateral, erectile dysfunction, and other conditions.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the motion to revise a November 1976 rating decision that granted service connection for bilateral otitis externa with a noncompensable rating on the basis of clear and unmistakable error (CUE).
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the remand instructions were not fulfilled and this matter must be returned for further development, including securing an adequate VA examination and opinion regarding the etiology of bilateral hearing loss.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted an effective date of October 10, 2013 for the addition of the Veteran's spouse as his dependent to his award of VA disability compensation. The issue of whether the debt in the amount of $19,696.58 was properly created and is valid remains pending and will be remanded.
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