The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to a duty to assist error and the need to adjudicate secondary service connection for ankle disabilities. The AOJ is instructed to ensure all VA treatment records have been associated with the claims file, and then to adjudicate the secondary service connection claim.
The deciding factor: The examiner found no residual from an injury likely healed without residual, attributing current symptoms to alternative causes such as pes planus.
- Claimed conditions
- headaches, acquired psychiatric disability (unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder), traumatic brain injury, insomnia, vertigo, left ankle pain and arthritis, right ankle pain and arthritis, left elbow pain and arthritis, right elbow pain and arthritis, left hand pain and arthritis, left hip pain and arthritis, right hip pain and arthritis, left knee and shin pain with arthritis, right knee and shin pain with arthritis, left shoulder/arm pain and arthritis, right shoulder/arm pain and arthritis, left wrist pain and arthritis, right wrist pain and arthritis, low back pain and arthritis, neuropathy, left lower extremity, neuropathy, right lower extremity, neck disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 29, 2024
- Citation
- A24051337
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 A24051337.
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 determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete development of records and will provide a supplemental statement of the case if necessary.
- Partly granted
The Board has not made a final determination on the claims of service connection for inguinal hernia, PTSD, joint pain, fibromyalgia, left knee disability, right knee disability, tinnitus, chronic fatigue syndrome, respiratory disability, sleep disorder, IBS, and headaches. The claims are remanded to obtain additional evidence and determine if these conditions are related to service.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for hypertension, fibromyalgia, and vertigo. The decision found that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service or a service-connected disability.
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