The Board remands the claims for service connection for a heart disability and respiratory disability to obtain an adequate medical opinion regarding their relationship to the appellant's service, including his toxic exposure risk activities during service in Southwest Asia.
The deciding factor: The opinions obtained were found inadequate due to various issues, necessitating further development of the record before a decision can be made on the merits.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart disability, to include paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, Respiratory disability, to include shortness of breath
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 3, 2025
- Citation
- A25030998
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 disabilities, including an acquired psychiatric disability, headaches, a back disability, heart disability, and residuals of a stroke, as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's active service or caused by his service-connected left ear disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for a heart disability, to include ischemic heart disease (IHD), due to an incomplete military personnel record and the need for further development of evidence related to exposure to Agent Orange.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, heart disability, diabetes mellitus, and neuropathy, to obtain additional evidence and a new medical opinion.
- Dismissed
The appeals for service connection and TDIU were dismissed due to the Veteran's death during the pendency of the appeal.
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