The Board has determined that additional examinations are needed to assess the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected conditions and to determine if there is a relationship between his chronic kidney disease and his service-connected neurocardiogenic syncope or hypertension.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that the existing evidence is outdated and does not adequately evaluate the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, necessitating new examinations.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease of the Lumbar Spine, Radiculopathy of the Lower Left Extremity, Neurocardiogenic Syncope, Chronic Kidney Disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 19, 2023
- Citation
- 23051496
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 23051496.
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 initial evaluations for chronic kidney disease and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) have been remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD and Chronic Kidney Disease ratings have been restored to their previous levels of 70% and 30%, respectively, due to the failure to conduct necessary VA examinations in November 2019.
- Granted
The Veteran's chronic kidney disease is granted with an effective date of August 10, 2022. The appeal for PTSD and hypertension remains denied.
- Denied
The Board denied an earlier effective date for service connection for chronic kidney disease as a complication of hypertension, finding that the issue was not within the scope of the Veteran's initial claim and there was no evidence suggesting a relationship between hypertension and chronic kidney disease until the September 2025 application.
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