The Veteran's claim of entitlement to an initial compensable rating for allergic rhinitis is being remanded due to a duty to assist error. The examiner must assess the current degree of nasal passage obstruction and determine if the Veteran’s history of 'right nasal papilloma' and 'left nasal fibrous papule and hyperplastic sebaceous gland' results in greater than 50 percent obstruction on both sides or complete obstruction on one side.
The deciding factor: The examination report did not adequately consider all of the Veteran's symptomology associated with allergic rhinitis, specifically his history of 'right nasal papilloma' and 'left nasal fibrous papule and hyperplastic sebaceous gland'.
- Claimed conditions
- allergic rhinitis, right nasal papilloma, left nasal fibrous papule and hyperplastic sebaceous gland
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 20, 2019
- Citation
- A19000961
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19000961.
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 appeals for service connection for asthma and a 10 percent rating based on multiple noncompensable service-connected disabilities were dismissed. The claim of entitlement to a compensable rating for eczema was denied, while the claim of entitlement to allergic rhinitis was not addressed as it pertained to different issues.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him so helpless as to be in need of regular aid and attendance, leading to the grant of SMC based on aid and attendance.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete findings and failure to properly address the onset, cause, and nature of his conditions. The VA will need to schedule examinations to determine if his rhinitis and bilateral hand disabilities are related to service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to new evidence received, and a need for additional medical opinions considering the Veteran's military occupation as a water safety survival instructor.
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