The Board has remanded the claims for further development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's right hand/wrist/finger and left leg/knee/toe disabilities, as well as assessing the severity of his service-connected left knee disability.
The deciding factor: The Board found that additional evidence is needed to determine the nature and extent of the Veteran's service-connected conditions and their relationship to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the right thumb and wrist, disability of the left leg and two toes, internal derangement, left knee, to include chondromalacia patella
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19102778
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 Veteran's service-connected left knee and right shoulder disabilities, along with compensation benefits awarded under 38 USC § 1151 for a right bicep detachment during shoulder surgery, prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment from December 22, 2011 to December 11, 2016.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the claims for earlier effective dates and higher ratings for various conditions, including left eye condition, right eye condition, hypertension, left knee, right knee, obstructive sleep apnea, and coronary artery disease (CAD), as well as denied an earlier effective date for CAD.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a right leg disability, kidney cancer, including residuals, and bilateral knee disabilities as the evidence did not support that these conditions began during active service or are related to an in-service injury or disease.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for headaches, erectile dysfunction, hypertension, right knee, left knee, and right shoulder was dismissed due to the untimely filing of the Board Appeal request.
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