The Veteran's tinnitus is granted service connection. The Board finds it was a pre-decisional duty to assist error not to clearly identify the Veteran's periods of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA, and remands for further action on dizziness (vertigo), gastrointestinal disorder, sleep apnea, back disorder, right shoulder disorder, right-hand disorder, left-hand disorder, headaches, and neck disorder.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's tinnitus is due to service exposure to noise during Desert Storm. The other issues are remanded as there was a pre-decisional duty to assist error in not clearly identifying periods of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA, and for obtaining an opinion on whether pre-existing vertigo or gastritis were aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, dizziness (vertigo), gastrointestinal disorder, sleep disorder (claimed as sleep apnea), back disorder (lumbago), right shoulder disorder, right-hand disorder, left-hand disorder, headaches, neck disorder (cervicalgia)
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 23, 2024
- Citation
- A24068356
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 899 · Granted: 45% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A24068356.
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 claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service connected. The issues of foot disability and cardiovascular disorder are remanded for additional development.
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