The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to unresolved issues regarding his TBI, OSA, surgically-repaired hernia, right knee disorder, and erectile dysfunction. The VA is instructed to obtain treatment records, schedule examinations, and determine the nature and extent of residuals from in-service TBIs, etiology of sleep apnea, relationship between current abdominal hernia and service, potential for right knee disability related to service, and whether erectile dysfunction is related to service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that additional development was needed due to unresolved issues regarding the nature and extent of residuals from in-service TBIs, etiology of sleep apnea, relationship between current abdominal hernia and service, potential for right knee disability related to service, and whether erectile dysfunction is related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), Surgically-repaired Hernia, Right Knee Disorder, Erectile Dysfunction
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19167161
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,676 · Granted: 24% (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 19167161.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's erectile dysfunction is secondary to his service-connected major depressive disorder, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim of service connection for erectile dysfunction due to insufficient medical evidence and a need for a VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for vertigo and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's hearing loss is not rated higher than 10 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the claims for service connection for OSA and insomnia must be remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions, as well as a failure to obtain TERA opinions on all relevant exposures.
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