The Board is remanding the Veteran's claims for service connection for a heart disorder and hypertension due to incomplete medical records, including those from Parkland Hospital in Dallas dated in 1975. A VA examination will be conducted by an examiner with appropriate expertise in cardiology to determine if the Veteran has had a heart disability at any time during this appeal since 2004 and whether it is as likely as not related to service. The examiner should also address whether hypertension was first manifested in service.
The deciding factor: The Board needs additional medical evidence to properly adjudicate the claims, including VA examination reports and treatment records from Parkland Hospital in Dallas dated in 1975.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart Disorder, Hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 1, 2016
- Citation
- 1634531
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 1634531.
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 Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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