The Board remands the claims for a higher disability rating for the service-connected right and left upper extremity neurological disorders to obtain an addendum medical opinion that assesses the current severity of the Veteran's conditions without considering the ameliorative effects of any medications taken.
The deciding factor: The Court's Memorandum Decision requires the Board to consider and address any potential ameliorative effects of the Veteran's medications for his bilateral upper extremity neurological disorder, as the relevant Diagnostic Codes do not account for the use of medication.
- Claimed conditions
- right upper extremity neurological disorder, left upper extremity neurological disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 28, 2024
- Citation
- 24032282
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for earlier effective dates and increased ratings, as well as service connection for various conditions.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded claims for service connection for various other disorders, including left wrist, right knee, left knee, cervical spine, upper extremity neurological, thoracolumbar spine, left foot, right foot, left ankle, and right ankle disorders.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for further development and to obtain additional evidence, including VA examinations and opinions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a migraine headache disorder and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, and assigned a 10 percent rating for his lumbar area surgical scar. The remaining claims were remanded for further development.
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