The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus type II and its associated peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to Agent Orange exposure. The Veteran's military duties in Thailand are being verified, and a VA examination is needed to determine if his diabetes and related neuropathies are related to his active service.
The deciding factor: The claims are remanded as the Veteran's claimed in-service exposure to herbicides (Agent Orange) needs verification, and further medical opinion is required regarding the etiology of his diagnosed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus type II, peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity, peripheral neuropathy of the left upper extremity, peripheral neuropathy of the right upper extremity
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19103238
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 service connection for coronary atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, and penile cancer as there was no evidence of a medical nexus between the Veteran's conditions and his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter to correct a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error, specifically to verify the Veteran's assertion of herbicide exposure while working on C-123 aircraft at Clark Air Base from May 1965 to November 1966.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, right hip degenerative joint disease and rheumatoid arthritis with acetabular cyst status post right total hip replacement, osteoarthritis, psoriatic arthritis, hypertension, prostate cancer, diabetes mellitus type II, fever sores, and a compromised immune system, as the evidence did not support a finding of service connection for any of these conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted earlier effective dates for the awards of service connection for various conditions associated with a stroke, including obstructive sleep apnea, depression, and diabetes mellitus type II.
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