The Board has remanded the claims for alopecia areata, upper respiratory infection, abdominal pain, and urethritis due to insufficient evidence linking these conditions to service.
The deciding factor: The VA treatment records post-service are silent for treatment or complaints of the claimed disorders, but the Veteran's lay statements indicate continuous symptoms since service. The duty to assist was triggered as there is a possibility that the disorders may be associated with his in-service occurrences.
- Claimed conditions
- alopecia areata, abdominal pain, upper respiratory infection, urethritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- September 26, 2024
- Citation
- A24061258
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 A24061258.
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
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for alopecia areata was dismissed because she submitted a request for Higher Level Review (HLR) before filing her Notice of Disagreement, which constitutes an impermissible concurrent election.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and upper respiratory illness or upper respiratory infection, finding that the persuasive weight of the evidence did not show a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claims for an increased disability rating for other specified stressor and trauma related disorder, as well as service connection for alopecia areata, were both denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a 100% disability rating for the former condition or establish service connection for the latter.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, and requests medical opinions on the etiology of his coronary artery disease, GERD with dyspepsia, and upper respiratory infection.
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