The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for hiatal hernia and diverticulitis due to inadequate addendum opinions from previous VA examinations. The new VA examinations are needed to determine if these conditions are related to service.
The deciding factor: Previous VA examination opinions were found to be inadequate as they did not consider all relevant evidence, including the Veteran's history of surgery during service and post-surgical complications.
- Claimed conditions
- Hiatal hernia, Diverticulitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 23, 2022
- Citation
- 22036360
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 22036360.
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 a compensable rating for the Veteran's GERD with hiatal hernia and dysphagia, finding that there was no documented history of esophageal stricture requiring daily medications to control dysphagia.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for GERD is being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions and correction of duty to assist errors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for his service-connected GERD and hiatal hernia status post Nissen fundoplication is being remanded due to the need for a retrospective medical opinion regarding the severity of his symptoms at the time of the March 2021 VA examination.
- Granted
The Veteran's disability ratings for PTSD with major depressive disorder, and panic disorder to include insomnia, and GERD were reduced. The motion to revise these decisions based on CUE is granted.
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