The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for a left kidney disability and granted it. However, the claim of secondary service connection for HTN to the extent it may be related to the service-connected left kidney disability is remanded due to inadequate reasoning in the VA examination.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner failed to provide an opinion on whether the Veteran's HTN was aggravated by his service-connected left kidney disability, which is required under the legal standard for secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- hypoplastic left kidney, hypertensive vascular disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 23, 2022
- Citation
- 22010450
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 22010450.
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 hypertensive vascular disease, concussion, diabetes mellitus, seizure disability, bilateral pes planus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (alcohol use disorder in sustained remission and PTSD). The effective date for hypertension was denied as the Veteran's claim was received within one year of the PACT Act.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal involves multiple service-connected and non-service-connected conditions, with some issues being remanded for further evaluation. The primary issue is the need to determine if additional evaluations are warranted for various disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a TDIU based on his combined service-connected disabilities, including back disability, migraines, and depression. The decision finds the Veteran unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal of service connection for hypertensive vascular disease due to untimely filing. The 20% rating for back disability was reinstated, but the appeal for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability is remanded.
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