The Veteran's appeal for service connection for peripheral neuropathy in the bilateral lower extremities, including as secondary to his service-connected lumbar spine disability or due to herbicide exposure (Agent Orange), is remanded. The Board requires a new VA examination and opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran’s conditions.
The deciding factor: The April 2019 VA examiner did not address the specific requests made in the Board's remand instructions, including whether the Veteran has bilateral neuropathy and if there is current evidence to support the diagnosis. The examination also did not provide a detailed analysis of why previous findings were no longer applicable.
- Claimed conditions
- Peripheral neuropathy, bilateral lower extremities, Right meralgia paresthetica
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2020
- Citation
- 20020166
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 20020166.
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 Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy and his in-service herbicide exposure. The case is returned for further development.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy, bilateral lower extremities and deep vein thrombosis left lower extremity (claimed as bilateral leg condition and neuropathy), and lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc disease L5-S1 (back condition). The evidence of record is insufficient to establish a link between the Veteran's current disabilities and either his military service or other service-connected disability.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for peripheral neuropathy, bilateral lower extremities as the evidence did not show early onset within one year of presumed herbicide exposure or a relationship to service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to herbicide exposure. The case will be reviewed again with a VA examination.
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