The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and a traumatic brain injury due to incomplete records and need for additional medical opinions.
The deciding factor: Incomplete service treatment records prevent clear determination of whether preexisting conditions clearly and unmistakably existed prior to service, and further evaluation is needed to determine if current diagnoses are related to service or other etiologies.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression and alcohol abuse), TBI
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 15, 2021
- Citation
- 21022319
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 21022319.
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 Veteran's eligibility for the VA Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) is being remanded because the decision was based on incomplete medical evidence and did not consider all available records.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for SMC based on aid and attendance is denied as the effective date cannot be prior to November 9, 2017.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty to assist error regarding the etiology of memory and concentration problems, which were not adequately addressed in the March 2021 VA examination. The Veteran's service-connected headaches may be related to an in-service head injury, and post-service records document reported memory issues.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for TBI, back strain, chest pain, foot pain, and tendonitis as there is no evidence of disease or injury incurred during active duty or training.
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