The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for right and left foot disabilities, including pes planus, plantar fasciitis, and chronic plantar fascitis slight pes planus. The AOJ is to obtain a VA examination to determine if there was any increase in severity of these conditions during service or if they are related to active service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's contentions suggest that his current bilateral foot disabilities may be due to aggravation of pre-existing pes planus, which occurred at service entrance. The AOJ failed to obtain a VA examination and medical opinion regarding the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- right foot disability, left foot disability
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 18, 2024
- Citation
- A24057926
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 A24057926.
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 Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him so helpless as to require the regular aid and attendance of another person, but his service-connected persistent depressive disorder alone rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Board has granted SMC at the housebound rate.
- Granted
The Veteran's left foot disability and anxiety disorder render him in need of regular aid and attendance due to his physical limitations and cognitive impairments, which require assistance from another person.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple disabilities, including neck, back, left foot, left knee, right knee, right foot, and right shoulder disabilities. The Board found insufficient evidence to support presumptive or secondary service connection.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for lumbar spine, cervical spine, right knee, left knee, right foot, left foot, and right ankle disabilities. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions began during or are otherwise related to his military service.
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