The Board has determined that additional evidentiary development is necessary prior to the adjudication of the claim due to concerns about the cause of the Veteran's left femoral nerve damage during his prostatectomy at VA Medical Center in August 2009.
The deciding factor: The Board found that a remand was necessary to determine if the Veteran’s left femoral nerve damage injury was caused by carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, or error in judgment involving the use of retractors during his prostatectomy at VA Medical Center in August 2009.
- Claimed conditions
- left femoral nerve palsy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 6, 2020
- Citation
- 20052170
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 20052170.
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 left femoral nerve palsy, resulting from a prostatectomy in August 2009, is considered an additional disability caused by VA medical treatment and not due to negligence. The Board granted compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for increased rating, TDIU and service connection for cause of death due to the Veteran's left femoral nerve palsy. The appellant is seeking a retrospective medical opinion on the nature, extent, and severity of all residual impairment stemming from the Veteran’s left femoral nerve palsy. Additionally, she wants an opinion regarding whether any of her service-connected disabilities caused or contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's left femoral nerve palsy is being remanded for additional development to determine if the VA medical treatment caused his disability, including obtaining a signed informed consent form from August 2009 prostatectomy.
- Granted
The Veteran's left femoral nerve palsy is found to be the result of VA medical care, specifically a hip revision surgery in March 2000. The Board determined that there was no evidence of negligence or lack of informed consent on the part of VA.
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