The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining updated VA treatment records and arranging for an orthopedic examination to assess the severity of the Veteran's neck, right and left ankle, and left elbow disabilities.
The deciding factor: The decision is being remanded due to the need for additional evidence and a contemporaneous examination to capture an accurate picture of the Veteran's disability levels.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine degenerative joint disease (neck disability), right ankle degenerative arthritis (right ankle disability), left ankle degenerative arthritis (left ankle disability), left elbow degenerative joint disease (left elbow disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 21, 2016
- Citation
- 1629033
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 1629033.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for spinal stenosis of the lumbar spine was denied, and his claims for service connection for cervical spine degenerative joint disease (neck disability), left elbow laceration, and bilateral hearing loss were remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for spine and left ankle disabilities due to insufficient medical evidence, including lack of consideration of medication effects and range of motion measurements. The Veteran will need new VA examinations to evaluate his current disability levels.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand both the neck disability and left knee disability claims due to new evidence indicating worsening of symptoms, including neurological abnormalities. The Veteran's statements about difficulty swallowing related to his neck surgery have also been considered.
- 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.
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