The Veteran's claim for increased ratings on his right hip disabilities, service connection for a low back disability, left knee disability, and specially adapted housing is being remanded due to the need for additional development.,Service connection for a kidney disability and a low back disability are also being remanded as there was insufficient medical opinion regarding their relationship to the Veteran's left hip disability.
The deciding factor: The claims involve issues related to secondary service connection, which requires an analysis of whether the claimed disabilities are proximately due to or the result of a service-connected condition. The current examination reports do not provide sufficient information on this aspect.,There is insufficient medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's kidney disability and low back disability are aggravated by his left hip disability.
- Claimed conditions
- left hip total replacement, kidney disability, low back disability, left knee disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 10, 2021
- Citation
- 21041794
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 21041794.
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 appeal is remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and hip disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Board has not made a final determination on the claims of service connection for inguinal hernia, PTSD, joint pain, fibromyalgia, left knee disability, right knee disability, tinnitus, chronic fatigue syndrome, respiratory disability, sleep disorder, IBS, and headaches. The claims are remanded to obtain additional evidence and determine if these conditions are related to service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient rationale in the July 2012 VA examination for the Veteran's left knee disability, and a new addendum opinion is needed.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee disability, right knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as these issues have been addressed in a separate docket.
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