The Veteran's claims for service connection for various hand, wrist, and knee conditions are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the relationship between her current diagnoses and her military service.
The deciding factor: Additional VA medical opinions are needed to determine whether the Veteran's current diagnoses of right hand condition, CTS, arm conditions, trigger finger, and knee disabilities are related to her military service or a service-connected condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Right hand condition, Right hand carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), Left hand CTS, Right arm condition, to include a cyst, lateral epicondylitis, and sprain, Left arm condition, to include a cyst, lateral epicondylitis, and sprain, Right hand trigger finger, Left hand trigger finger, Right knee disability, Left knee disability, Right ankle disability, Left ankle disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2023
- Citation
- 23016716
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 23016716.
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 Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 10, 1997, for a 10% disability rating for his right ankle disability is denied as there was no CUE in the previous decisions.
- Granted
The Board has granted the appellant's claim for service connection for left ankle disability residuals, finding that his current condition is due to an in-service injury and granting the benefit of the doubt.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU claim for bilateral knee disabilities and his right and left knee scars have been granted. He is now rated at a combined 60% disability rating from June 1, 2018 based on bilateral factors for his bilateral knee disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran's entitlement to higher level of SMC at the intermediate rate is granted, effective from January 8, 2021. He was previously in need of aid and attendance due to his left knee disability since February 1, 2017, and now has additional disabilities rated at 50 percent or more.
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