The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient rationale in previous VA opinions regarding the cause of death and whether otitis externa was erroneously added to the Veteran's death certificate. The VA is required to provide a new opinion on these issues.
The deciding factor: The VA needs to provide a clear, detailed rationale for its determination that auditory canal disease was erroneously added to the Veteran’s death certificate and why glioblastoma multiforme and otitis externa are different anatomopathological conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- otitis externa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19161457
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 19161457.
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 appeal was granted for service connection of left ear hearing loss and OSA, but denied for hepatic steatosis. Several claims were remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date for tinnitus but denied increased ratings and service connection for other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for a recurrent neurological disability, including partial complex seizure disorder and headache disability, and a recurrent ear disability, including otitis externa, to ensure necessary development is completed.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for otitis externa, hemorrhoids, allergic rhinitis, and irritable bowel syndrome. The claims for memory loss disability, sinusitis, neck disability, and back disability were remanded.
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