The case is REMANDED for the following actions: 1) Advise the Veteran that he may submit any additional medical and non-medical evidence relating to his gout and his left and right knee disorders that is not already in VA's possession. 2) Associate with the record any VA clinical documentation not already of record pertaining to the treatment of the Veteran for gout or for left or right knee disorders. 3) Schedule the Veteran for a VA medical examination to obtain an opinion as to the current nature of his gout and whether he has active disease process. If necessary, schedule additional VA examinations as necessary. The examiner should address the severity of all chronic residuals if the Veteran's gout is not an active disease process. 4) Schedule the Veteran for a VA medical examination to obtain an opinion as to the nature and etiology of his right and left knee disorders. The examiner should address whether the Veteran's left and right knee disorders were aggravated by his gout.
The deciding factor: The case requires additional examinations and evaluations to determine the current status of the Veteran's gout, his left and right knee disorders, and their relationship to service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Knee Disorder, Left Knee Disorder, Gout, including chronic residuals affecting the left foot
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 26, 2016
- Citation
- 1637660
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 1637660.
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 Board has determined that the Veteran's right knee disorder is related to his military service and grants entitlement to service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection for a right knee disorder and an initial compensable rating for TBI, as new evidence was received. The effective date for service connection for TBI is being remanded.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's right knee disorder is related to his service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for right and left hip disorders due to a pre-decisional error in obtaining an adequate nexus opinion prior to the June 2021 rating decision.
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