The Board has determined that a medical opinion is needed to address the Veteran's cause of death claim, specifically regarding whether asbestos exposure caused kidney disease and if the right leg below the knee amputation contributed to his death.
The deciding factor: The appeal involves reopening a previously denied claim for service connection for the Veteran’s cause of death. The Board finds that additional medical evidence is needed to address the specific theories of entitlement raised by the Appellant.
- Claimed conditions
- Kidney disease, Right leg below the knee amputation
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 19, 2019
- Citation
- 19186982
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 the veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, a kidney cyst (claimed as kidney abscess), kidney cancer, kidney disease, and benign prostatic hyperplasia due to lack of evidence supporting a link between these conditions and his military service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for non-allergic rhinitis, lung nodules, prostate cancer, and diabetes mellitus due to herbicide agent exposure. The claims for an ocular disorder and kidney disease were denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for liver transplant, kidney disease, and heart failure due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure and medical records.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, diabetic neuropathy of both lower extremities, and kidney disease, all as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.