The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service connection claims due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether his obesity, caused by his service-connected right knee disability, is a substantial factor in causing other disabilities. The claims for service connection for left knee, lower back, left hip, heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus are all remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board cannot make fully-informed decisions on the issues of service connection without medical opinions regarding whether obesity caused by the Veteran's right knee disability is a substantial factor in causing other disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Knee Degenerative Joint Disease, Unstable Right Knee, Postoperative with Removal of Semilunar Cartilage, Left Knee Disability (Degenerative Joint Disease), Lower Back Disability, Left Hip Disability, Heart Disability (Coronary Artery Disease, Atrial Fibrillation, Congestive Heart Failure), Hypertension, Diabetes Mellitus, Type II
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 4, 2018
- Citation
- 18108241
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 18108241.
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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