The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between his current disabilities and active service. The issues include lower back disability, ankle disabilities (both ankles), bilateral flat feet, and complex regional pain syndrome in legs.
The deciding factor: Insufficient medical evidence is available to determine if the Veteran’s current conditions are related to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- lower back disability (degenerative disc disease), ankle disability, left flat foot, right flat foot, complex regional pain syndrome in the left leg, complex regional pain syndrome in the right leg
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 25, 2018
- Citation
- 18145009
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 18145009.
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 granted service connection for right flat foot, finding that the evidence supports a relationship between the condition and active-duty service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left and right shoulder osteoarthritis, headaches as secondary to PTSD, but denied aggravation of pre-existing left flat foot. The appeals for right knee and left knee conditions were dismissed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions, including migraines, bilateral knee disability, bilateral hearing loss, ankle disability, back disability, acquired psychiatric disorder, scars on the head, neck, or face, and tinnitus, due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left and right elbow disabilities manifested by numbness, but denied service connection for a low back disability and other claimed conditions.
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