The Board remands the claim for an esophageal disability to obtain a more adequate VA opinion as the previous one was found inadequate.
The deciding factor: The September 2022 examination is considered inadequate due to its conclusory nature and failure to consider all of the Veteran's medical history, including in-service and post-service complaints of throat problems.
- Claimed conditions
- esophageal disability, to include esophageal intramucosal pseudodiverticulosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2023
- Citation
- 23001884
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 service connection of an esophageal disability, to include GERD with hiatal hernia, due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss and service connection for left knee, left foot, and right ankle disabilities were denied. The claim for esophageal disability was remanded.
- Denied
The Board found that no new and material evidence had been received to reopen the claim for service connection for duodenal ulcer, and denied entitlement to service connection for esophageal disability as secondary to duodenal ulcer.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.