The Board remands the claim for a new VA examination to address whether the Veteran's esophagitis/chronic reflux is related to his service or secondary to his service-connected obstructive sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The April 2021 VA examination was found inadequate as it did not address whether the Veteran's service-connected obstructive sleep apnea aggravated his GERD, and remand is necessary to correct this duty-to-assist error.
- Claimed conditions
- esophagitis/chronic reflux
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25043825
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 service connection for right lower extremity sciatica associated with the Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral spine strain, but remanded claims for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and sleep apnea.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his lung cancer was related to his service-connected melanoma.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for anxiety but denied it for sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's sleep apnea was less likely than not related to his active service or service-connected acquired psychiatric condition.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for migraine headaches as proximately due to the Veteran's service-connected tinnitus.
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