The Veteran's skin disability is being remanded for further examination and opinion to determine if it is at least as likely as not related to his military service, including herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: The July 2013 VA examiner did not provide an opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's current skin disabilities and his military service or herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- discolored toenails with moderate subungual debris, white maceration between toes, dry skin, hyperpigmented and thickened areas of the gluteal folds, groin, and underarms
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 10, 2015
- Citation
- 1538729
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 1538729.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claim for migraine headaches is granted. Claims for dry skin, neck disability, right shoulder disability, and sinusitis are remanded.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for kidney disability, dry skin, and unspecified depressive disorder based on secondary causation by the Veteran's service-connected hypertension. The effective date is not specified.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's dry eye syndrome is granted service connection due to an in-service injury. Several other claims for service connection are remanded.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the September 2024 denial of service connection for a right knee disability and a right shoulder disability is dismissed as these claims are now moot due to subsequent grants of service connection. The initial rating for temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ) was denied, while an initial rating of 10 percent for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) was granted.
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