The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's hip and foot disabilities, as well as her sleep apnea. The main reasons for remand include obtaining new medical opinions regarding the severity of the hip conditions, the etiology of the bilateral foot disability, and the Veteran's service connection claims.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the current evidence was inadequate to rate the Veteran's disabilities accurately due to incomplete or conflicting examination reports. Additionally, there were gaps in the record related to her private treatment records for her right foot surgery and VA treatment records from June 2024.
- Claimed conditions
- left hip strain, right hip strain, sciatic radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, bilateral foot disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2026
- Citation
- A26020832
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation A26020832.
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.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral foot disability is related to his active military service and grants service connection for this condition.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for lumbosacral strain, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, and left hip strain as secondary to lumbosacral strain have been granted. The claim for left hip strain is remanded due to insufficient evidence on whether it was caused or aggravated by the service-connected lumbosacral strain.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for a new examination to address the Veteran's lay statements regarding her symptoms during service.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the proposed reduction in disability rating for lumbar decompression and fusion with lumbosacral strain is dismissed. The Veteran's initial higher disability ratings for sciatic radiculopathy of both lower extremities are denied, but he is granted a TDIU.
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