The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of informed consent documentation for cryotherapy procedures performed on the Veteran's finger, which may have led to additional disability.
The deciding factor: The need for an informed consent form as required by 38 C.F.R. § 17.32 is unclear and requires further investigation.
- Claimed conditions
- scarring, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, mild flexor tendonitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 17, 2020
- Citation
- 20073667
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 remands the claims for service connection for a respiratory disorder, rib disorder, fibromyalgia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, and psoriasis due to an inadequate medical opinion.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for scarring was dismissed due to a procedural error.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for all the claimed conditions as there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between any of these disabilities and the Veteran's active duty service.
- Partly granted
The Board has reopened the claims for service connection for rib disorder, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, fibromyalgia, respiratory disorder, skin condition, to include psoriasis, bilateral hand arthritis, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and bilateral ulnar neuropathy. However, the claims for service connection for bilateral hand arthritis, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, bilateral ulnar neuropathy, hypertension, rib disorder, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, fibromyalgia, respiratory disorder, and skin condition, to include psoriasis, have been denied.
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