The Board has remanded the cases for further development to determine if the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents during his service in Guam, which could potentially establish a link between his claimed conditions and his military service.
The deciding factor: Further investigation is needed to confirm or deny the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents listed under 38 C.F.R. § 3.307(a)(6) and any other toxic materials he claims were present during his service in Guam.
- Claimed conditions
- ischemic heart disease (IHD), residuals of soft tissue sarcoma
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19184874
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 Board remands the case for further development to verify the Veteran's claimed herbicide exposure while stationed in Korea from September 1967 to October 1968.
- Partly granted
The Board denied the claim for service connection for bilateral pes planus, finding that it preexisted service and did not increase in disability. The claims for ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and pes planus were remanded for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board granted the appellant's eligibility for direct payment of attorney fees based on a total rating for compensation purposes based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, but denied it for increased ratings for certain conditions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a skin disorder diagnosed as seborrheic keratosis, and increased the rating for ischemic heart disease (IHD) to 60 percent from June 8, 2021. Other claims were denied.
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