The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is denied as the diagnosed alcohol use disorder and depressive disorder are not related to his military service.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for right shoulder, left shoulder, erectile dysfunction, right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy are remanded due to insufficient evidence addressing potential in-service causation or aggravation of these conditions.,Service connection is denied as the acquired psychiatric disorder (alcohol use disorder and alcohol induced depressive disorder) is not related to service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's diagnosed alcohol use disorder and depressive disorder are considered a result of his voluntary use of alcohol, which precludes service connection.,There is insufficient evidence to establish the onset or causation of the Veteran's right shoulder, left shoulder, erectile dysfunction, lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and lower extremity radiculopathy conditions during military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder (alcohol use disorder and alcohol induced depressive disorder), Right shoulder disorder, Left shoulder disorder, Erectile dysfunction, Right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, Left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 24, 2022
- Citation
- 22048287
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 22048287.
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
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for further development due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's TDIU and DEA claims are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors prior to the rating decision on review. The effective date for TDIU is set at January 31, 2021, based on the last day of employment. However, the RO needs to obtain SSA records regarding earnings from July 2020 to January 31, 2021, to determine if the Veteran's employment was marginal.
- Granted
The rating reduction from 20 percent to 10 percent for the service-connected right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy was improper, and restoration of the 20 percent rating is granted. The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for the right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy is denied.
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