The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations and opinions. The hearing loss, shoulder, cervical spine, and right shoulder disabilities may be related to service, but further examination is needed to determine this. Headaches and carpal tunnel syndromes require opinion regarding their relationship to service or other conditions.
The deciding factor: The claims are remanded as the current medical evidence is insufficient to make a determination on the merits of the service connection claims without additional examination and opinion.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, left shoulder disability, cervical spine disability, right shoulder disability, migraine headaches, left upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome, right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 6, 2018
- Citation
- 18155931
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 18155931.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's right shoulder disability and migraines/chronic headaches are remanded for additional development due to insufficient opinions on the etiology of her conditions.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
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