The Board remands the Veteran's claims for an initial evaluation higher than 10 percent for left shin splints with patellofemoral pain syndrome, a compensable evaluation for valvular heart disease, service connection for an eye disability, and service connection for a skin disability due to inadequate VA examinations.
The deciding factor: The June 2021 examinations were found to be inadequate as they did not meet the required standards for rating purposes, particularly in terms of range of motion testing and symptom correlation with service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- left shin splints with patellofemoral pain syndrome, valvular heart disease, eye disability, skin disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 21, 2024
- Citation
- A24067380
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 Veteran is granted a 100 percent rating for valvular heart disease based on MET testing showing that at a workload of 3 METs or less, the condition results in fatigue and breathlessness.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for a right foot disability, left foot disability, and skin disability to obtain additional medical opinions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded the claims for sinus disability, bilateral hip disability, right shoulder disability, hypertension, sleep apnea, diabetes mellitus, skin disability, back disability, bilateral neurological disability of the upper extremities, and bilateral neurological disability of the lower extremities.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for an eye disability, as there was no evidence of a current disability related to symptoms of blurriness and watery eyes during the appeal period.
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