The Board has granted presumptive service connection for hypertension due to exposure to herbicide agents under the PACT Act. Service connection for chronic kidney disease is also granted as secondary to now service-connected hypertension. The right knee disability, diverticulitis, and Barrett's esophagus are all remanded for further development.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's right knee condition was likely due to expected wear and tear on a morbidly obese individual with an elevated BMI, rather than service-connected injuries. The right knee disability is also remanded as there were no STRs documenting any pre-service knee issues or injuries during service.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension, chronic kidney disease, right knee disability, diverticulitis, Barrett's esophagus
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2024
- Citation
- 24003486
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,680 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 24003486.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and hip disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
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