The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's degenerative arthritis contributed substantially and/or materially to his death. The VA examiner needs to provide a more detailed opinion considering all relevant evidence, including articles submitted by the Veteran and a private physician’s opinion.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the October 2019 VA examiner's opinion was inadequate as it did not fully consider the medical articles submitted by the Veteran and the appellant's contention regarding toenail clipping leading to death.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease left ankle status post tibiotalar arthrodesis, right knee internal derangement and meniscal tear with musculoligamentous strain associated with degenerative arthritis, left ankle status post tibiotalar arthrodesis, musculoligamentous strain, left knee associated with degenerative arthritis, left ankle, status post tibiotalar arthrodesis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20004567
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left hip osteoarthritis and right hip osteoarthritis as secondary to the Veteran's now service-connected knee disabilities, but denied service connection for a variety of other conditions including bilateral ankle, shoulder, foot, mood disorder, tinnitus, hyperlipidemia, and knees.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for bilateral foot and ankle conditions to correct a duty to assist error, requiring medical opinions on their relationship to the Veteran's service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for left ankle, right knee, and left knee as secondary to the service-connected right ankle due to a lack of development by the AOJ.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for hearing loss and granted an effective date of August 5, 2021, for the award of service connection for chronic sinusitis. The claims for increased ratings and additional service connection were also denied or remanded.
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