The Board remands the claims for service connection for cervical spine pain, left shoulder disorder, left elbow disorder, left ankle pain, and left knee pain due to outstanding private treatment records and inadequate medical opinions.
The deciding factor: Remand is required to obtain relevant private treatment records and an adequate medical opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran's musculoskeletal claims.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical spine pain, left shoulder disorder, to include left shoulder rotator cuff tendonitis with strain and shoulder impingement syndrome, left elbow disorder, to include medial epicondylitis of the left elbow, left ankle pain, left knee pain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 5, 2025
- Citation
- A25010766
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,242 · Granted: 27% (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 A25010766.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeal for service connection for various conditions including hypoglycemia, sinusitis, left foot pes planus, right foot pes planus, right foot plantar fasciitis, left ankle pain, left hip osteoarthritis, left knee sprain, bradycardia, dry eye, hernia, hypercholesterolemia, and bilateral hearing loss.
- Partly granted
The claims for service connection for hypertension, back pain, right hip pain, left hip pain, right knee pain, and left knee pain have been readjudicated. The claim for sleep apnea has also been readjudicated.,Service connection has been granted for a neck condition, back pain, right hip pain, left hip pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, an acquired psychiatric disorder, bruxism, and vertigo.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for left and right ankle pain due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The AOJ should have provided a VA examination/medical opinion prior to denying the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty-to-assist error that occurred prior to the initial decision. The Veteran's service-connected left tibia stress fracture is associated with residual disabilities of his left foot, knee, and ankle.
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