The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining an addendum opinion from the November 2016 VA examiner to address whether the Veteran's current left foot/ankle conditions are etiologically related to any symptomatology noted during service and whether there is clear and unmistakable evidence that his pre-existing condition was not aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The Board found insufficient information in the record to make a decision on the claim without additional development, including an addendum opinion from the November 2016 VA examiner.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle/foot disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 19, 2017
- Citation
- 1717526
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 1717526.
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 reopened the claim for service connection for sexual dysfunction and granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, alcohol and substance abuse, bilateral pes planus, migraine headaches, cataracts, vertigo, and glaucoma. The claims for left ankle/foot disorders other than pes planus, right knee injuries, and left knee injuries are denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected right knee disorder renders him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment, warranting a TDIU rating.
- 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.
- 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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