The Board has found the most recent VA medical opinion inadequate and has requested a new independent medical expert (IME) to provide an adequate opinion regarding whether the Veteran's right vestibular dysfunction was caused by or made worse by VA carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill during his July 8, 2011 hospital visit and antibiotic treatment from November 23, 2011 to December 1, 2011.
The deciding factor: The Board found the most recent opinion inadequate due to its failure to discuss other medical evidence linking the Veteran's right vestibular dysfunction to his IV treatment and/or antibiotics used during his hospitalization.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Vestibular Dysfunction, Hearing Loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 12, 2021
- Citation
- 21068638
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 21068638.
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 bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss as there is no current diagnosis of a bilateral hearing disability for VA purposes, and the Veteran did not have a hearing loss disability at any time during or recent to the filing of his claim.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, asthma, and foot conditions, rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work history throughout the appeal period.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss as there is no current diagnosis of a disability that meets VA's criteria for a disability.
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