The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and TDIU due to incomplete examinations, lack of recent VA treatment records, and need for additional development including SSA records.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on the need for new examinations and updated medical records as well as a review of the Veteran's Social Security Administration (SSA) disability benefits claim.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder impingement syndrome with acromioclavicular arthritis, left knee medial meniscal tear, left elbow olecranon bursitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 7, 2021
- Citation
- 21062321
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,421 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 21062321.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for left elbow pain, right elbow pain, left hip pain, and right hip pain due to lack of evidence showing a current disability within one year of discharge from active duty or that the conditions were incurred in or caused by service.,For right elbow pain, the Board found no current disability as there was no complaint or treatment for an elbow condition during service or since. For left and right hip pain, the Board found no evidence showing a current disability within one year of discharge from active duty or that the conditions were incurred in or caused by service.
- Granted
The Board granted ratings of 30 percent or higher for the Veteran's cervical spine degenerative arthritis, lumbar spine osteoarthritis with intervertebral disc syndrome, right shoulder strain, left elbow olecranon bursitis, right elbow olecranon bursitis, and headaches. Service connection was also granted for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) under the PACT Act.
- Partly granted
The Board granted increased ratings for left elbow olecranon bursitis, left and right knee flexion, and left knee instability, as well as service connection for depression. However, it denied increased ratings for the left elbow prior to July 19, 2022, and a compensable rating for the right knee patellofemoral syndrome.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's bilateral knee disorders are related to his service-connected disabilities.
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.