The Board has decided to remand the case due to inadequate examination and needs a new opinion regarding the Veteran's right hand disability.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide a reasoned medical explanation or describe the Veteran’s right hand disability in sufficient detail, as required by Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake (2008) and Ardison v. Brown (1994).
- Claimed conditions
- Right hand laceration, Right extensor muscle, fascia and tendon strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 5, 2020
- Citation
- 20031627
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 20031627.
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 Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unemployable, and the Board has granted a TDIU based on his combined disability rating of 90 percent.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for increased disability rating for the right hand laceration prior to October 23, 2008 and a separate claim for service connection for respiratory disorders were denied. The Veteran is currently rated at 10% for his right hand laceration.
- Denied
The VA determined that the veteran's right hand laceration residuals do not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent, as they are manifested by asymptomatic scars and mild incomplete paralysis of the median nerve.
- 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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