The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient compliance with previous instructions and an incomplete medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's liver fibrosis. The case is now being sent back for further development and evaluation.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not address the prior examiner’s statement that the etiology of the liver fibrosis cannot be determined, nor provided a clear alternate (nonservice-related) etiology for the condition.
- Claimed conditions
- liver fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 16, 2020
- Citation
- 20003887
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · Granted: 17% (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 20003887.
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 Veteran's claims for service connection for cirrhosis, hepatitis C, and liver fibrosis are being remanded due to the need for a VA examination to determine if his conditions are related to his military service, specifically his exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial rating for liver fibrosis is denied as his symptoms do not warrant a higher than 10 percent evaluation. The TDIU claim is also denied due to the Veteran meeting the schedular criteria and having other service-connected disabilities that allow him to work.
- Denied
The Veteran's liver fibrosis is not service-connected as it was not shown to be related to his military service, including exposure to burn pits. The Board found that the liver fibrosis is a known pathology and did not have any disabling effects or signs/symptoms.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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