The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for Grave's disease due to service-connected diabetes and/or exposure to Agent Orange. The case is being sent back for a VA examination with an endocrinologist who will provide opinions on whether Grave's disease is related to service, as well as if it was caused or aggravated by service-connected diabetes.
The deciding factor: The remand directive required the provision of an opinion from an endocrinologist regarding the relationship between Grave's disease and service, including exposure to Agent Orange, as well as its relation to service-connected diabetes.
- Claimed conditions
- Grave's disease
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 6, 2019
- Citation
- 19143506
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.
- Dismissed
The veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection and rating issues related to various conditions, including obesity, chronic renal dysfunction/kidney disease, hyperthyroidism, Grave's disease, chronic liver disease, TMJ disorder, sleep apnea, back pain, dermatographic urticaria residuals from anthrax vaccine, and hemorrhoids.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran was not unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation by reason of his service-connected disabilities prior to July 11, 2019.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for Grave's disease and denied revisions to prior rating decisions on the basis of clear and unmistakable error, as well as denying increased ratings and earlier effective dates for various conditions.
- Granted
Service connection for coronary artery disease is granted. Initial ratings for diabetes mellitus, left upper and right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy are denied. An initial 20% disability rating for left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy is granted. Service connection for Grave's disease and lumbar spine disability is remanded.
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