The Board has ordered a remand to obtain an additional VA medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, specifically addressing his lay statements about symptom onset and treatment history.
The deciding factor: The examiner is asked to consider the Veteran’s lay assertions in determining whether there is at least a 50% likelihood that his current disability is related to service exposure to herbicides.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral lower extremity neuropathy
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19193180
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,088 · Granted: 33% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19193180.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, diabetes mellitus type II, and bilateral lower extremity neuropathy. The Veteran's cause of death due to these conditions is also recognized.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the August 2023 rating decision granting a TDIU was not an initial decision, making the appellant eligible for direct payment of fees from past due benefits awarded.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities contributed substantially or materially to his cause of death, and DIC benefits are granted. The issue of entitlement to DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is dismissed as moot.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II (DMII) with bilateral lower extremity neuropathy and hypertension due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to his active duty service. The Board found that there was no exposure to herbicide agents during service and that the Veteran did not have any in-service onset or relationship between his current conditions and his military service.
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