The Veteran's claim for an effective date prior to December 14, 2015 for the grant of service connection for left wrist median nerve entrapment at the carpal tunnel was denied. The Board also found that the Veteran's right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome claim should be remanded due to a lack of nexus opinion addressing causation and aggravation by his service-connected left hand condition.
The deciding factor: The effective date for the grant of service connection must be based on when the claim was received, not when the condition arose or when treatment began. The right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome claim requires an addendum opinion to address whether it is related to the Veteran's service-connected left hand and left wrist conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- left wrist median nerve entrapment at the carpal tunnel, right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19160722
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 19160722.
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions were denied, except for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss disability which were granted. The veteran was also granted service connection for hypertension.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various knee, wrist, and ankle disorders as there was no evidence of onset during active service or a relationship to service.
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