The Veteran's thoracolumbar spine, cervical spine, right hip, left hip, right knee, left knee, right ankle, and left ankle disabilities are remanded for further development. The Veteran's right foot and left foot disabilities, as well as his radiculopathy of the upper and lower extremities, peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, heart disorder, hypertension, and Parkinson’s disease are also remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that additional VA examinations are needed to address the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete evaluations and lack of rationale provided by the VA examiners.
- Claimed conditions
- {"condition_name":"Thoracolumbar spine disability","diagnosis":"Severe variant of degenerative changes of the thoracolumbar spine (diffuse, idiopathic, skeletal hyperostosis), with associated thoracolumbar myositis and spasms"}, {"condition_name":"Cervical spine disability","diagnosis":"Severe variant of degenerative changes of the cervical spine (diffuse, idiopathic, skeletal hyperostosis), with associated cervical paravertebral myositis and spasms"}, {"condition_name":"Right hip disability","diagnosis":"Osteoarthritis of both hips"}, {"condition_name":"Left hip disability","diagnosis":"Osteoarthritis of both hips"}, {"condition_name":"Right knee disability","diagnosis":"Meniscal tear of the right knee; patellofemoral syndrome of the right knee; degenerative arthritis of both knees"}, {"condition_name":"Left knee disability","diagnosis":"Degenerative arthritis of both knees"}, {"condition_name":"Right ankle disability","diagnosis":"Osteoarthritis of both ankles and Achilles tendon enthesopathy of both ankles"}, {"condition_name":"Left ankle disability","diagnosis":"Osteoarthritis of both ankles and Achilles tendon enthesopathy of both ankles"}, {"condition_name":"Right foot disability","diagnosis":"Metatarsalgia of both feet, and bilateral foot degenerative changes (spurs)"}, {"condition_name":"Left foot disability","diagnosis":"Bilateral foot degenerative changes (spurs)"}, {"condition_name":"Radiculopathy of the right upper extremity","diagnosis":"Peripheral neuropathy of the right upper extremity"}, {"condition_name":"Radiculopathy of the left upper extremity","diagnosis":"Peripheral neuropathy of the left upper extremity"}, {"condition_name":"Radiculopathy of the right lower extremity","diagnosis":"Peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity"}, {"condition_name":"Radiculopathy of the left lower extremity","diagnosis":"Peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity"}
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19115590
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 19115590.
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.
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- Remanded (sent back)
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- Granted
The Board granted service connection for myasthenia gravis based on the Veteran's exposure to hazardous substances during his military service.
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