The Veteran's claims for respiratory, sinus, diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, back, left knee, and right knee disabilities are being remanded due to insufficient evidence or lack of clear rationale in the August 2017 VA examination. The claims for hearing loss and tinnitus are also being remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board requires additional medical opinions regarding the Veteran's service connection claims as there is insufficient evidence or a lack of clear rationale provided by the August 2017 VA examiner.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory disorder (including bronchiectasis or COPD), sinus or nasal disorder (including rhinitis or sinusitis), diabetes mellitus type II, hypertension, sleep apnea, back disability (including arthritis), left knee disability (including arthritis), right knee disability (including arthritis), muscle spasms in the right arm, muscle spasms in the left arm
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 25, 2020
- Citation
- 20075664
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 20075664.
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 claim for a direct service connection opinion and an adequate secondary service connection aggravation opinion.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including sinusitis, elbows condition, cervical condition, erectile dysfunction, kidney condition, sleep apnea, wrists condition, asthma, shoulders condition, ankles condition, eye condition (bilateral dry macular degeneration), peripheral vascular disease (heart condition), and rhinitis.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.