The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection have been remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.,The Veteran's hypertension is being reviewed as secondary to his major depressive disorder. The Board also needs an opinion regarding whether it is related to any medications prescribed for his service-connected conditions.,The Veteran's GERD and Barrett's esophagus are being reviewed as secondary to his major depressive disorder, but the need for a medical opinion on the relationship between these conditions and any medications prescribed for his service-connected disabilities remains unclear.,The Veteran's cold injury residuals of the right hand and left hand are still under review with a focus on whether they should be rated higher than 30 percent.,The Veteran's cold injury residuals of the right hand and left hand are still under review with a focus on whether they should be rated higher than 30 percent.
The deciding factor: The Court found that the ratings assigned did not consider the Veteran's symptoms of weakness and changes in skin thickness related to his cold injuries.,The need for an opinion regarding whether hypertension is secondary to any medications prescribed for his service-connected conditions remains unclear.,The need for a medical opinion on the relationship between GERD and Barrett's esophagus with any medications prescribed for his service-connected disabilities remains unclear.,The need for an opinion regarding whether cold injury residuals of the right hand should be rated higher than 30 percent remains unclear.,The need for an opinion regarding whether cold injury residuals of the left hand should be rated higher than 30 percent remains unclear.
- Claimed conditions
- Hypertension, Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), Barrett's esophagus, Cold injury to the right hand, Cold injury to the left hand
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 20, 2021
- Citation
- 21075298
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 21075298.
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 the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for Dupuytren's contracture of the left hand, right hand, and GERD is remanded due to inadequate VA examination opinions and failure to consider toxic exposure risk activities during service.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
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