The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is remanded for a new examination. The issues of service connection for jaw condition/grinding of the teeth, bilateral wrist condition to include carpal tunnel, bilateral hand pain, bilateral elbow pain, left knee pain, and left shoulder pain are also remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's lumbar spine disability is currently rated at 10 percent. The Board finds that a new examination is required as the evidence of record suggests a potential worsening of the condition since his last VA examination in April 2015. Additionally, there may be outstanding VA treatment records and those should be obtained upon remand.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative changes of L4-L5 and L5-S1 (lumbar spine disability), Jaw condition/grinding of the teeth, Bilateral wrist condition to include carpal tunnel of the wrists, Bilateral hand pain, Bilateral elbow pain, Left knee pain, Left shoulder pain, Left foot stress fracture
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 11, 2023
- Citation
- 23021992
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 23021992.
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 Veteran's claims for service connection for depressive disorder, GAD, cervical discogenic pain, left shoulder pain, bilateral foot pain, and left elbow pain are granted. The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for upper and lower extremity radiculopathy.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for degenerative joint disease/arthritis cervical spine (neck) due to a lack of evidence showing the Veteran had this condition during or within one year after his military service.,The Board has remanded the claims for appendicitis, bilateral shoulder pain, and hemorrhoids as there is insufficient medical evidence to determine if these conditions are related to the Veteran's military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeal for payment of non-VA medical services provided on April 11, 2018, is denied because the care was not authorized by VA and did not meet the criteria for emergency treatment.
- Granted
The Veteran was found to be unable to self-sustain in the community due to his cognitive decline and multiple physical disabilities, requiring continuous personal care services each time he completed three or more activities of daily living.
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