The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors, including incomplete medical opinions and failure to obtain relevant records such as ROTC personnel records.
The deciding factor: There were insufficient medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities and the AOJ failed to obtain necessary service personnel records.
- Claimed conditions
- cervical strain, left knee strain, lumbosacral strain and degenerative disc disease of the thoracolumbar spine (back disability), right shoulder impingement syndrome with labral tear, including SLAP, sequelae of shoulder labrum repair and acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis (right shoulder disability), right foot osteoarthritis, left foot osteoarthritis, left hand osteoarthritis, right hand rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 9, 2026
- Citation
- A26020925
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 A26020925.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeals for service connection of various conditions due to untimely filing of the appeal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee strain, right knee strain, shin splints of the right leg, and shin splints of the left leg are being remanded due to a failure to obtain VA examinations and medical nexus opinions.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial evaluations for left knee strain, limitation of extension and flexion were both denied as the evidence did not show that his symptoms warranted a rating higher than 10 percent.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions were granted effective from July 1, 2020.
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