The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate opinions regarding the Veteran's right ankle traumatic arthritis and right femur lytic lesion. The Veteran is seeking a higher rating for his right ankle condition, while also seeking service connection for his right femur lytic lesion.
The deciding factor: The VA failed to provide adequate retrospective opinions on the severity of the Veteran's right ankle disability and its progression over time, as well as an opinion addressing whether the right femur lytic lesion is related to his service-connected conditions or any other factors.
- Claimed conditions
- right ankle traumatic arthritis, right femur lytic lesion
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 7, 2023
- Citation
- 23049257
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 23049257.
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 has remanded several issues for further evaluation, including right ankle traumatic arthritis, left foot fibromatosis, both right and left foot hypertrophic scars, migraine headaches, lumbosacral strain, and chronic cough.
- Denied
The Board denied all claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates, except for the grant of an earlier effective date for total disability due to individual unemployability (TDIU) and eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance based on permanent and total disability status.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for major depressive disorder, with anxious distress, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, left ankle traumatic arthritis, right ankle traumatic arthritis, left knee chondromalacia, right knee chondromalacia, and left foot pes cavus, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals as they were not processed under the modernized review system (AMA). The Veteran's claims for increased ratings of his left and right ankle conditions are still pending in the legacy appeal system.
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