The Board remands the claims for an initial compensable rating for actinic keratosis and scalp scars due to new evidence that was not available during the previous VA examination.
The deciding factor: Remand is necessary because the Board cannot interpret new photographs submitted by the Veteran, which may show a greater extent of skin condition than previously assessed, without making an independent medical determination.
- Claimed conditions
- actinic keratosis, scalp scars
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 22, 2025
- Citation
- A25036511
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 PTSD, bilateral hearing loss, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, unspecified anxiety disorder, seborrheic dermatitis, and denied increased ratings for left shoulder disability, myalgia, left-hand disability, right-hand disability, right shoulder disability, kidney stones, plantar fasciitis, lung disability, actinic keratosis, and squamous cell carcinoma. The Board remanded service connection claims for several conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and actinic keratosis based on the Veteran's in-service exposure to solar radiation.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims for actinic keratosis, neoplasm of uncertain behavior, and erythema.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date of January 19, 2023 for the award of service connection for actinic keratosis and remanded a claim for a compensable initial rating.
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