The Veteran's dental surgery in November 2008 and subsequent infection resulted in additional disabilities such as facial pigmentation, damaged facial nerve, lost teeth, and heart problems including the insertion of a pacemaker. The Board finds remand necessary due to inadequate medical evidence linking these conditions to the VA treatment.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence is currently inadequate for adjudication, requiring an expert opinion on whether the additional disabilities are caused by VA care.
- Claimed conditions
- facial pigmentation, damaged facial nerve, lost teeth, heart problems including the insertion of a pacemaker
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19147173
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,071 · Granted: 26% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19147173.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all service connection claims due to the Veteran's death.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran does not have a disability manifested by cracked teeth or lost teeth that is proximately due to or the result of his service-connected PTSD. The Board finds that the dental condition was less likely than not caused by bruxism related to PTSD.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been received to reopen the Veteran's claims for service connection for lost teeth (dental disability) and an acquired psychiatric disorder. The original denial of these claims remains final.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability did not cause or aggravate his tooth decay and lost teeth, as there was no evidence of a direct connection between his medication use for pain management and his dental issues.
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