The Board has determined that there have been errors in the development process and additional evidence is needed to properly adjudicate the claims for service connection for right hand disability and TDIU. The Veteran's right hand disability, including pain, numbness, cramping, and discomfort, will be remanded for further evaluation.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that there has been a duty to assist error in obtaining relevant private treatment records and authorization for non-VA medical records. Additionally, the April 2023 VA opinion is inadequate as it does not provide an adequate rationale or explanation to support its conclusions regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's right hand disability.
- Claimed conditions
- right hand pain, numbness, cramping, discomfort
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 18, 2024
- Citation
- 24002826
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 907 · Granted: 35% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 24002826.
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.
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The Veteran's disability of numbness, tingling, and pain in the left lower extremity is granted as service connected.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, left ankle crepitus, left hand pain, right hand pain, and irritable colon syndrome (IBS).
- Granted
The Veteran's radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities have been granted initial ratings of 20 percent each, effective April 19, 2023.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn due to his request for withdrawal of the appeal, and thus the case is dismissed.
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