The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining medical opinions on the etiology of his upper extremity disabilities and dermatitis. The issues include service connection for left and right upper extremity disabilities manifesting in pain and numbness, as well as an initial disability evaluation for dermatitis.
The deciding factor: The Federal Circuit has clarified that secondary service connection is warranted where a nonservice-connected disability would have been less severe 'but-for' a service connected disability, either because there is an etiological link or because the service-connected disability resulted in the inability to treat the non-service-connected disability. The Board will remand for obtaining opinions addressing these criteria.
- Claimed conditions
- left upper extremity disability manifesting in pain and numbness, right upper extremity disability manifesting in pain and numbness, service-connected dermatitis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- September 6, 2023
- Citation
- 23048970
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 23048970.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
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Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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- Remanded (sent back)
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- Granted
The Veteran's major depressive disorder is found to be caused by his service-connected low back and radiculopathy disabilities, which prevent him from doing enjoyable activities and daily living tasks.
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