The Veteran's request for an increased evaluation of his left ankle disability is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination.,The Veteran's claims for service connection of right and lumbar back disabilities are remanded as secondary to his service-connected left ankle disability, requiring a comprehensive opinion from a VA examiner.,No specific rating or effective date was provided in this decision.
The deciding factor: The Veteran has asserted that his left ankle disability has worsened and is taking increased amounts of analgesic pain medication. The Board notes the need for further examination to assess current state of the claimant’s disability.,Secondary service connection claims require a comprehensive opinion from a VA examiner regarding whether the right ankle and lumbar back disabilities are related to his service-connected left ankle disability, or if they were caused by or aggravated by it.,No specific reasoning was provided for the remand in this decision.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle disability, right ankle disability, lumbar back disability
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19184880
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,858 · 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 19184880.
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 has expanded the scope of the claim to include any mental health disorder raised by the record and has remanded for additional development regarding service connection for left leg, ankle, and psychiatric disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for left, right ankle disabilities, left and right hip disabilities, left and right shin splints, and left and right knee disabilities due to inadequate nexus opinions in the VA examination reports. The Veteran contends that her current disabilities are related to injuries sustained during basic training.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection of left knee disability, tension headaches, a left ankle disability, and a back disability due to the Veteran's death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to new evidence received, and a need for additional medical opinions considering the Veteran's military occupation as a water safety survival instructor.
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