The Board has found that there are pre-decisional duty to assist errors and remanded the case for further development. The Veteran's bilateral lower extremity peripheral artery disease is being reviewed as secondary to service-connected hypertension.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners did not consider all relevant medical literature or treatment records, improperly applied a 'direct cause' standard, and did not address whether the service-connected condition aggravated the non-service-connected condition.
- Claimed conditions
- left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 7, 2026
- Citation
- A26031842
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 A26031842.
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 diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, ischemic heart disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease, left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, and hypertension as the evidence did not establish an in-service event or exposure to herbicide agents.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for ratings on four different conditions have been dismissed due to his death during the appeal process.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an effective date prior to May 10, 2023, for service connection and a higher evaluation for his bilateral lower extremity peripheral artery disease. The claim was granted as secondary to service-connected hypertension but not earlier than May 10, 2023. The right lower extremity peripheral artery disease with above the knee amputation is rated at 60 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for ischemic cardiomyopathy, diabetes type II, and left lower extremity PAD are remanded. The Board needs more information about the Veteran's exposures during service.
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