The Veteran's appeal includes claims for service connection for various conditions, and the Board has remanded these issues due to their potential impact on a TDIU claim. The TDIU issue will be reconsidered after addressing the service connection claims.
The deciding factor: The TDIU claim is inextricably intertwined with the service connection claims, which need to be addressed first.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disease, heart condition, residuals of a fractured left ankle, arthritis of multiple joints, low back strain, peripheral neuropathy of bilateral lower extremities
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 16, 2018
- Citation
- 18102934
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 18102934.
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 Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart condition, including ischemic heart disease. The evidence did not support a finding of a current disability related to service.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD was granted with an initial evaluation of 50 percent, effective September 24, 2007. The appeal regarding the heart condition and sleep disorder is denied. The Veteran's hearing loss prior to August 24, 2015, warrants a 20 percent rating.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew all his appeals, including the one for an increased rating for low back strain.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for athletes' foot, low back strain, and plantar fasciitis due to a lack of a VA examination prior to the August 2020 rating decision.
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