The Veteran's growth of both 4th fingers and frostbite of the right hand have been remanded for further evaluation. The TDIU claim is also remanded due to its inextricability with the other claims.
The deciding factor: Further evaluations are needed as per recent court decisions (Correia v. McDonald, Sharp v. Shulkin) and VA regulations regarding joint disabilities and functional loss during flare-ups.
- Claimed conditions
- Growth of both 4th fingers, Frostbite of the right hand
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 11, 2018
- Citation
- 18117813
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 18117813.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that additional evidence is needed to determine the current severity of the Veteran's back disability, rhinitis, and other conditions. The VA will attempt to obtain relevant private treatment records from WHC and Dr. S., as well as any outstanding VA treatment records. A new VA examination will be scheduled for these claims.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all claims of service connection for various conditions, including hepatitis C, arthritis, frostbite, and an acquired psychiatric disorder. The appeal is dismissed due to the death of the appellant.
- Denied
The veteran's combined disability rating for all service-connected disabilities was properly calculated as 50 percent, and he is not entitled to a higher combined rating by operation of law.
- 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.
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