The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for rheumatoid arthritis of her bilateral wrists and hands due to inadequate examinations in determining the severity of her conditions.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations were found to be inadequate as they did not properly consider whether the Veteran’s flare-ups associated with her disabilities cause additional functional loss or limitation of motion.
- Claimed conditions
- rheumatoid arthritis of the bilateral wrists, rheumatoid arthritis of the right hand with painful motion of the thumb and long finger, rheumatoid arthritis of the left hand with painful motion of the index and long finger
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2018
- Citation
- 18147133
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 18147133.
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 service connection for rheumatoid arthritis of the elbows, wrists, hands and fingers as well as paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT). The Veteran's claims were based on his belief that these conditions were related to his service-connected left shoulder disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded 10 issues related to tinnitus, allergic rhinitis, psoriasis, and various forms of rheumatoid arthritis due to the lack of service treatment records. The RO is instructed to attempt to locate these records through multiple avenues.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for increased evaluations for his service-connected rheumatoid arthritis was denied. The effective date of the deconstructed ratings remains March 31, 2007.
- 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.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.