The Board has remanded the case due to failure of the AOJ to decide whether the Veteran's right knee disability is secondary to his service-connected meralgia paresthetica. The AOJ must also obtain a new medical opinion addressing both causation and aggravation, and then adjudicate the claim for service connection for a right knee disability.
The deciding factor: The AOJ failed to comply with the Board's February 2018 remand order regarding the inextricably intertwined issue of service connection for a right knee disability (claimed as right knee arthritis) as secondary to the service-connected meralgia paresthetica, and must obtain a new medical opinion addressing both causation and aggravation.
- Claimed conditions
- back disability, right knee arthritis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20003028
Veterans Law Judge
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 20003028.
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.
- Granted
The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of service connection for a back disability, endometriosis, thyroid condition, and chronic fatigue syndrome due to new evidence submitted since the last final denial. The claims are now considered on their merits.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete service treatment records and a need for additional VA examination. The Veteran's back disability is being reviewed again with new evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for back, hip, and lower extremity disabilities due to a lack of VA examination and outstanding treatment records. The Veteran's current diagnoses and lay statements will be considered in determining if his conditions are related to service.
- Granted
The Veteran's adenocarcinoma of the colon is granted as secondary to his service-connected other specified trauma and stressor related disorder to include alcohol use disorder. The back disability claim is remanded for further development.
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