The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including a VA examination to address the nature and etiology of his heart disabilities. The examiner will need to identify each heart disability he currently has or had during the appeal period and determine if it fits within the definition of ischemic heart disease. They must also assess whether it is at least as likely as not related to service, including exposure to herbicide agents.
The deciding factor: The VA examination needs to address all identified heart disabilities and their relation to service, including exposure to herbicide agents.
- Claimed conditions
- Ischemic Heart Disease, Severe bradycardia (due to vasovagal mechanism), Sick sinus syndrome, Hypertension, Heart block
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2018
- Citation
- 1800191
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 1800191.
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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