The Veteran is seeking service connection for a left hand fourth finger fracture that she believes was caused by her service-connected right ankle disability. The Board has ordered a new VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's current left hand fourth finger disability, including whether it is related to her service-connected right ankle disability.
The deciding factor: The Court found the December 2009 VA examination inadequate due to lack of consideration of medical history regarding instability of the right ankle joint and insufficient rationale for the examiner's statement about exostosis not affecting the ankle joint.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a left hand fourth finger fracture
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 2, 2015
- Citation
- 1546371
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 1546371.
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: Granted
The Veteran's residuals of a left hand fourth finger fracture are found to be secondary to her service-connected right ankle disability. The issue of whether there was clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in the June 1998 rating decision that denied PTSD is also remanded.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's left hand fourth finger fracture was not caused or aggravated by her service-connected right ankle disability, and thus denied her claim for service connection.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
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