The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.,The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.,The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.,The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine whether he has rheumatoid arthritis due to in-service exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.,The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine the nature and etiology of his peripheral neuropathy of the legs, including whether it is secondary to a service-connected disability or due to in-service exposure to contaminated water while stationed at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.,The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development and examination to determine the nature and etiology of his peripheral neuropathy of the legs, including whether it is secondary to a service-connected disability or due to in-service exposure to contaminated water while stationed at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.
The deciding factor: The VA examination provided by the July 2016 examiner was inadequate for determining the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities, as it did not address the skin and scars resulting from his in-service shrapnel wounds.,The VA examination provided by the July 2016 examiner was inadequate for determining the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities, as it did not address the skin and scars resulting from his in-service shrapnel wounds.,The VA examination provided by the July 2016 examiner was inadequate for determining the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities, as it did not address the skin and scars resulting from his in-service shrapnel wounds.,The medical opinions of record do not address whether rheumatoid arthritis is at least as likely as not proximately due to or the result of any incident of service, including exposure to contaminated water while stationed at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.,The medical opinions of record do not address whether peripheral neuropathy of the legs is at least as likely as not proximately due to or the result of any incident of service, including exposure to contaminated water while stationed at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.,The medical opinions of record do not address whether peripheral neuropathy of the legs is at least as likely as not proximately due to or the result of any incident of service, including exposure to contaminated water while stationed at Camp Lejeune or an herbicide agent while stationed in Vietnam.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left leg, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left forearm, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the head and neck, rheumatoid arthritis, peripheral neuropathy of the left leg, peripheral neuropathy of the right leg
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2022
- Citation
- 22000593
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (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 22000593.
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
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- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for blackouts and fainting spells, a bilateral foot condition, and rheumatoid arthritis due to lack of new and relevant evidence.
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