The Board has remanded the cases for further development and clarification regarding whether the Veteran has an acquired psychiatric disorder, separate from his service-connected PTSD, and if so, whether it is related to service. Additionally, the Board has also remanded the case for a determination on whether the Veteran's irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is causally or etiologically related to service.
The deciding factor: The Board found that clarification was required to determine whether the Veteran had an acquired psychiatric disorder separate from his PTSD and if so, whether it was related to service. The same reasoning applies to the IBS claim.
- Claimed conditions
- anxiety disorder, IBS
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19194839
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 352 · Granted: 37% (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 19194839.
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 Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
- Granted
A 30 percent rating for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is granted, and service connection for hypertension is denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) as there is no current diagnosis of IBS or symptoms at any time during the pendency of the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's tinnitus was granted service connection. The Board found the VA audiological examination inadequate for adjudicative purposes and remanded for an adequate VA audiological examination to determine if the Veteran has bilateral hearing loss. Service connection for PTSD, anxiety disorder, and depression is also remanded as there are insufficient competent medical evidence on file.
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