The Board has decided to remand the claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to insufficient explanation in a previous medical opinion regarding the cause of the Veteran's injuries.
The deciding factor: The Board found that an addendum opinion is needed from a cardiologist to clarify whether the fall, resulting in injuries to his teeth, nose and finger, was caused by VA treatment or failure to treat, including medication prescribed, inadequate 'fall precautions,' and/or not being admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.
- Claimed conditions
- broken front teeth, broken nose, broken right index finger
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19146011
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,456 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19146011.
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 Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for right and left lower extremity sciatic nerve problems, as these issues are now considered resolved. The appeal was also remanded to address a broken nose and knee disability claims.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for a broken nose, deviated septum, low back disability, left foot numbness, right foot numbness, sinus disability, left elbow and forearm disability, left knee disability, and right shoulder strain. Service connection was granted for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and left hamstring strain. The Board also denied an initial evaluation in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder with residuals of a traumatic brain injury, an initial evaluation in excess of 30 percent for migraine headaches, an initial evaluation in excess of 20 percent for fibromyalgia, and an evaluation in excess of 20 percent for irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea. The Board denied a total disability rating based on individual unemployability as a result of service-connected disabilities prior to December 1, 2023.
- Granted
Service connection is granted for dizziness as secondary to service-connected tinnitus.,Service connection is denied for memory loss. The Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of memory loss or functional impairment from it.,Service connection is granted for nausea as secondary to service-connected headaches.,Service connection is denied for right ear hearing loss disability due to lack of evidence showing noise exposure in service.,Service connection is denied for broken nose. There is no evidence of a current injury or functional impairment related to the claimed event.,Service connection is granted for fatigue as secondary to service-connected tinnitus.,Service connection is denied for irritable bowel syndrome. The Veteran does not have a current diagnosis and there is no evidence of symptoms from it.,Service connection is denied for low back disability. There is no evidence of a current injury or functional impairment related to the claimed event.,Service connection is denied for right flat foot. There is no evidence of a current injury or functional impairment related to the claimed event.,Service connection is denied for skin disability (claimed as skin rash, dermatitis and hives). The Veteran does not have a current diagnosis and there is no evidence of symptoms from it.,Service connection is denied for sleep apnea. There is no evidence of a current injury or functional impairment related to the claimed event.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran seeks payment for non-VA medical treatment provided on July 23, 2022. The AOJ denied the claim due to past 90-day timely filing and lack of adequate notice. The Board is remanding the case to provide proper notice and obtain missing documents.
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