The Board remands the claims for service connection for right and left hip and leg disorders, as well as entitlement to TDIU, due to inadequate medical opinions.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinions were found to be inadequate due to lack of explanation and reliance on absence of evidence during service without considering post-service evidence. Additionally, the Veteran's representative challenged the competency of the VA examiner.
- Claimed conditions
- right lower extremity arthritis, left lower extremity arthritis, right hip arthritis, left hip arthritis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 14, 2025
- Citation
- 25005022
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 Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right knee strain, left hip strain, right hip arthritis, and lumbar spine degenerative disc disease as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected chronic iliotibial band syndrome of the left knee. The appeal was denied for service connection for right ear hearing loss.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right hip arthritis and a TDIU as of June 8, 2020, while denying increased ratings for sciatica, left hip arthritis, and bilateral hearing loss.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the left and right foot hallux valgus with osteoarthrosis, left and right ankle disabilities, and left and right hip arthritis as there was no evidence of an in-service injury or disease, continuous symptoms since service, or a relationship to service.
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