The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to missing service medical records and incomplete etiology opinions.
The deciding factor: The VA needs to obtain alternative sources of evidence as the Veteran's service treatment records are unavailable, and provide new etiology opinions without relying on the absence of in-service treatment or injury.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle calcaneal spurs, right shoulder condition, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, degenerative joint disease and generalized arthralgia, right hand carpal tunnel syndrome, left hand carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritic changes of the right knee, left knee medial meniscus tear and lateral meniscus tear chondromalacia, left hip arthritic changes, right hip arthritic changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 24, 2017
- Citation
- 1705672
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 1705672.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for treatment purposes only under Chapter 17 for various conditions, including cervical spine condition, right upper extremity nerve condition, left upper extremity nerve condition, headache condition, right wrist condition, left wrist condition, right elbow condition, left elbow condition, right shoulder condition, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), bilateral pes planus, right ankle disorder, left ankle disorder, and left knee disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's hypertension, left knee patellofemoral syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral syndrome have been granted service connection as secondary to his service-connected disabilities. The lumbar spine disability has also been granted but the effective date is not specified.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including psychiatric disorders, chronic fatigue, congestive heart failure, DM II, hypertension, and a right shoulder condition. The Veteran's claims were based on presumed exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
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