The Board remands the claims for service connection for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo and cerebral arteriosclerosis with mild brain atrophy, as secondary to the service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors.
The deciding factor: The February 2024 and May 2024 VA medical opinions did not properly address the Veteran's theory of secondary service connection. No opinion has been provided to determine if the claimed disabilities would have been less severe 'but-for' the service-connected bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), cerebral arteriosclerosis with mild brain atrophy
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 6, 2025
- Citation
- A25049993
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal regarding entitlement to service connection for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is remanded due to inadequate medical opinions.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for post-concussion syndrome, migraine headaches, and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) as these conditions clearly and unmistakably preexisted the Veteran's active duty service and were not permanently worsened beyond their natural progression by such service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial 10 percent rating for allergic rhinitis and a 30 percent rating for benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, but denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's migraines are reasonably shown to have manifested by very frequent, completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability, warranting a 50 percent rating.
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