The Board has determined that a VA examination is necessary to determine if the appellant has spina bifida, except spina bifida occulta. The examiner must also opine whether the appellant's diagnosed Arnold Chiari II malformation is a form or manifestation of spina bifida.
The deciding factor: The claim requires clarification on the nature and etiology of the appellant’s spina bifida condition and whether his diagnosed Arnold Chiari II malformation is related to spina bifida.
- Claimed conditions
- spina bifida, Arnold Chiari I/II malformation
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 27, 2018
- Citation
- 18160364
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 18160364.
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 an effective date prior to January 1, 2020 for the grant of benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1822 for a child born with spina bifida due to the specific statutory effective date set by The Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019.
- Partly granted
The Board denied benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1815 for a child born with birth defects and remanded the claim for benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1805 for a child born with spina bifida.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to determine whether the appellant's congenital neural tube defect caused or contributed to his January 1986 hypoxic brain injury event, and if not, to estimate the type and severity of symptoms he would currently exhibit due to spina bifida.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to obtain the Veteran's complete service records and readjudicate the issues of entitlement to benefits for spina bifida and other covered birth defects.
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