The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hip conditions, finding that the VA examination opinion is inadequate and VCAA notice is needed. The Veteran's bilateral hip replacements are secondary to his service-connected back condition.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide sufficient rationale regarding the relationship of the Veteran’s bilateral hip osteoarthritis to his service-connected back condition and did not address aggravation by the service-connected back condition.
- Claimed conditions
- right hip replacement, left hip replacement
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19130297
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter of entitlement to service connection for right hip replacement due to a need for an addendum medical opinion addressing aggravation.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for multiple conditions was dismissed due to the untimely filing of the Board Appeal request.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a right hip disability, diagnosed as right hip avascular necrosis and right hip replacement, and a right hip scar, status post right hip replacement, as secondary to the service-connected right hip replacement.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an adequate opinion to determine if the Veteran's left hip replacement was aggravated by his service-connected lumbar spine disability.
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