The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral knee disorder and bladder disease due to missing records, including in-patient hospitalization records from San Diego Naval Hospital. The Veteran is also required to provide authorization for VA to obtain his private treatment records from orthopedists he worked with after service and from Kaiser Permanente. A VA examination will be scheduled to determine the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral knee disorder and bladder disease, including considering potential herbicide exposure in Vietnam.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran has missing medical records which need to be obtained before a decision can be made on his claims for service connection. The Veteran is also required to provide authorization for VA to obtain private treatment records from orthopedists and Kaiser Permanente, as well as any outstanding VA treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral knee disorder, bladder disease
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 5, 2018
- Citation
- 18140758
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 18140758.
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 Board has granted service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disorder, gout, multiple painful joints, bilateral ankle disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that service connection is granted for fibromyalgia and tinnitus. The remaining claims of service connection for a back disorder, bilateral knee disorder, bilateral hip disorder, and cervical cancer are remanded due to procedural errors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection related to back, hip, knee, and foot disorders should be remanded due to a duty to assist error. The VA examinations are needed to determine if these conditions are related to service or caused by other service-connected disabilities.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal of his claims for service connection for various conditions has been withdrawn by the Veteran. As a result, all these claims are dismissed.
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