The Board finds that a remand is necessary to obtain a medical opinion addressing direct service connection for the Veteran's right shoulder disability and whether his service-connected left ankle condition has aggravated his right shoulder condition.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide an opinion on direct service connection or on aggravation of the right shoulder condition by the left ankle condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Shoulder Sprain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 24, 2019
- Citation
- A19002221
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 Veteran's appeals for increased evaluations for right shoulder and low back disabilities have been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support ratings higher than 20% for the period prior to June 11, 2014 and more than 40% thereafter.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has reopened the claim of service connection for a right shoulder disability due to new evidence showing current diagnoses. However, the claim is still pending as it needs further examination and medical opinion to determine if these conditions are related to service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded to provide the appellant with VCAA notice and obtain additional medical records.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
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