The Board remands the claims for additional medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's neuropathy, including whether it is related to herbicide exposure during service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinions were found inadequate as they did not address potential causation from herbicide exposure and failed to consider the aggravation prong of secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- neuropathy of the left lower extremity, neuropathy of the left upper extremity, neuropathy of the right lower extremity, neuropathy of the right upper extremity
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 3, 2025
- Citation
- A25057550
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 conditions, including left and right eye dry eyes, cataracts of the left and right eyes, neuropathy of the left lower extremity, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, left renal arteriovenous malformation, aneurysm, pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB), degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the lumbar spine, recurrent subluxation of the left knee prior to May 13, 2020, left total knee replacement, disability rating in excess of 60 percent from September 1, 2021, forward for left total knee replacement, DJD of the right knee, right knee instability, burns of the bilateral ankles, linear scar of the left knee, post-surgical tender scars of the left knee, and a total disability rating due to unemployability (TDIU) based upon service-connected disabilities prior to June 14, 2019.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hyperthyroidism as secondary to in-service exposure to herbicide agents, and for neuropathy of the right and left lower extremities and right eye exophthalmos and diplopia as secondary to service-connected hypothyroidism.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for neuropathy of all four extremities due to a need for additional development, including verification of claimed nerve agent exposure and obtaining an updated medical opinion.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for neuropathy of the left upper extremity as there is no evidence that it was incurred in or caused by service, and it did not manifest within one year of separation from service.
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