The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for osteoarthritis of the thoracolumbar spine and an acquired psychiatric disability (schizophrenia) due to inadequate medical opinions. The Veteran must be provided with additional examinations to address these issues.
The deciding factor: The initial VA examination reports were found to be inadequate as they did not consider all relevant evidence, including the Veteran's reported symptoms and a specific incident during service that may have contributed to his current condition.
- Claimed conditions
- osteoarthritis, thoracolumbar spine, an acquired psychiatric disability (schizophrenia)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19181495
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, right hip degenerative joint disease and rheumatoid arthritis with acetabular cyst status post right total hip replacement, osteoarthritis, psoriatic arthritis, hypertension, prostate cancer, diabetes mellitus type II, fever sores, and a compromised immune system, as the evidence did not support a finding of service connection for any of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal for special monthly pension (SMP) based on the need for regular aid and attendance or housebound status is remanded to ensure that the appellant receives every possible consideration, including a new VA examination.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a left ankle disability, low back disability, right knee disability, and left knee disability as the evidence did not support that these conditions were incurred in or aggravated by active service.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a right knee disability, diagnosed as meniscal tear, osteoarthritis, osteopenia, and resolved medical femoral epicondyle fracture based on aggravation of a pre-existing condition during ACDUTRA.
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