The Board has remanded several issues for further development, including service connection claims and evaluations for various conditions. The Veteran's TBI claim is denied due to lack of evidence of current disability related to the in-service injury. Service connection for left arm surgery scars remains denied as there are no residuals attributable to the in-service injury. Other claims have been remanded without assigning a specific disposition.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran did not have residuals from his service-connected TBI and thus cannot establish service connection for this condition. The VA examiners provided opinions indicating that any cognitive impairment is less likely related to the in-service TBI, given its long latency period after the injury. Other claims were remanded due to insufficient evidence or procedural issues.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Left Arm Surgery Scars, Sinus Disorder, Headaches, Acquired Psychiatric Disability (including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety Disorder, and Neurocognitive Disorder)
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19100222
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 19100222.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its residuals, including unsteady gait, somnolence, and cognitive dysfunction. The decision is based on the Veteran's credible lay statements about in-service head injuries and subsequent seizures.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for initial compensable ratings for obstructive sleep apnea and headaches, finding that the evidence does not support a finding of persistent daytime hypersomnolence or other manifestations consistent with a compensable disability rating under the criteria established by Diagnostic Codes. The matter is remanded to obtain additional information from the Veteran regarding his headaches and their impact on his daily life.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and therefore, service connection for TBI is denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's OSA is granted as secondary to PTSD, but his headaches are denied due to lack of service connection.
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