The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for right and left trapezius strain are being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his conditions.
The deciding factor: Changes in the Veteran’s symptoms and treatment records indicate that a new examination is necessary to accurately assess the current state of his disability.
- Claimed conditions
- right trapezius strain, left trapezius strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19163722
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,030 · Granted: 17% (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 19163722.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining clarification from the August 2017 VA examiner regarding which symptoms are related to his service-connected left trapezius strain and whether any non-service-connected conditions represent a progression of that disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU due to inadequate VA examinations in previous decisions. The claims will be returned to the RO for further review.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for left thigh disability, left shoulder disability, and right trapezius strain based on the evidence supporting a medical nexus between each condition and the Veteran's in-service injuries.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's left shoulder degenerative arthritis and rotator cuff tendonitis are a progression of his service-connected left trapezius strain. The case is being returned for another VA examination.
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