The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral carotid artery disease and thoracic aortic aneurysm due to inadequate medical opinions. The case is returned for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions provided were insufficient to address the nature and etiology of the Veteran's bilateral carotid artery disease and thoracic aortic aneurysm, particularly regarding their relationship to herbicide agent exposure in service and secondary to service-connected coronary artery disease.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral carotid artery disease, thoracic aortic aneurysm
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2022
- Citation
- 22000661
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,902 · Granted: 11% (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 22000661.
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 Board remands the claim for further development to verify the Veteran's dates of service and obtain an addendum medical opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for bilateral carotid artery disease to obtain an adequate VA medical opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's in-service exposure to herbicide agents and his current condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, requiring adequate medical nexus opinions.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for thoracic aortic aneurysm disability and for an initial compensable rating for hypertension disability. The Board found that there was no evidence of a causal relationship between the disabilities and the Veteran's service, including presumed herbicide exposure.
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.