The Board remands the claim for a right foot disability, to include metatarsalgia, due to an incomplete medical examination and to correct a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error.
The deciding factor: The March 2024 VA examination did not fully resolve all theories reasonably raised in the record and did not consider all relevant factual premises.
- Claimed conditions
- right foot metatarsalgia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 16, 2025
- Citation
- A25034985
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date of August 15, 2022, for a 10 percent maximum initial rating for service-connected right foot metatarsalgia and granted service connection for right foot pes planus and left foot pes planus.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of death, finding that a disability of service origin did not cause or contribute substantially to the Veteran's accidental death.
- Partly granted
The Board granted earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for right and left foot pes planus, metatarsalgia, and plantar fasciitis, an effective date of April 22, 2020, for the grant of service connection for right and left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and a TDIU. However, it denied higher ratings for bilateral cavus and compensable disability ratings for scars.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.