The Veteran's pes planus was granted service connection. The Board has ordered remand for further development regarding other bilateral lower extremity disabilities and the relationship between these conditions and his service-connected rheumatoid arthritis and pes planus.
The deciding factor: The case requires additional medical opinions to address the secondary service connection claims and obtain missing medical records from Mease Medical Clinic.
- Claimed conditions
- pes planus, plantar fasciitis, shin splints/medial tibial stress syndrome, calcaneal spurs, arthritis of the feet, including degenerative arthritis of the hindfeet and extensive degenerative changes along the tarsal rows with evidence of previous posttraumatic changes, degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, neurological impairment of the lower extremities, degenerative changes of the right knee, degenerative changes of the left knee (now with total knee replacement), arthritis of the ankles
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 13, 2024
- Citation
- 24011931
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 24011931.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, finding that the Veteran's pre-existing pes planus condition was aggravated by service. The effective date is August 15, 2025.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for athletes' foot, low back strain, and plantar fasciitis due to a lack of a VA examination prior to the August 2020 rating decision.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis with pes planus, finding that her current condition had its onset during active military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy, which is secondary to her degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, has been remanded due to a duty-to-assist error. The Board found that VA did not obtain private medical records from Hiro Chiropractic and Springfield Family Physicians, who treated the Veteran during the period on appeal.
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