The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for irritable bowel syndrome and spastic colon, but denied his claims for obesity as secondary to PTSD and fibrosis of the liver (fatty liver) as secondary to a service-connected disability. The issues have been remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The Board found new and material evidence to reopen the claim for irritable bowel syndrome and spastic colon, but denied the claims for obesity and fatty liver due to lack of direct or secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- irritable bowel syndrome, spastic colon, obesity, fibrosis of the liver
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 17, 2018
- Citation
- 18103166
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 18103166.
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 Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II, is granted on a secondary basis with obesity serving as an intermediate step due to service-connected low back disability, sciatica, and right shoulder disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for adhesions as secondary to irritable bowel syndrome, finding that there was no nexus between the claimed condition and service or a service-connected disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The DIC claim is denied because the Veteran was not rated totally disabled for a continuous period of at least 10 years immediately preceding his death. The service connection issue is remanded due to duty to assist error.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for effective dates earlier than July 18, 2024, for the awards of service connection for tinnitus, tension headaches, and irritable bowel syndrome have been dismissed.
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