Board decisions
What the Board granted and denied for scars
In the Board decisions we have indexed since 2019, veterans raised 22,614 issues about scars. Of the ones it decided, the Board granted 29 percent. It sent 35 percent of all these issues back for more work.
Every decision counted here is an appeal. The regional office decided the claim first, the veteran disagreed, and the Board is the next step after that. These are not the odds on a first claim.
Since 2019
137 were reopened for a fresh look, which is not a grant and is not counted as one. 1,794 were dismissed or withdrawn. 128 ended some other way, or we could not read the outcome.
Across every year we have indexed, that is 73,668 issues across 54,088 decisions, 27 percent granted of the ones decided, and 34 percent sent back for more work.
What a remand is
A remand is not a yes or a no. The Board sends the claim back to the regional office for more work, such as a new exam or a record that was not in the file. The claim is decided again later, and that later decision is a separate document.
What showed up in the decisions
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| What the decision mentions | Granted11,844 issues | Denied31,393 issues |
|---|---|---|
| A medical opinion, or the words nexus or at least as likely as not, anywhere in the decision | 54 percent | 55 percent |
| The words lay statement, buddy statement, or lay evidence | 48 percent | 48 percent |
| A hearing was held (the veteran or a witness testified) | 44 percent | 31 percent |
| The decision calls an exam or medical opinion inadequate | 8 percent | 7 percent |
These are mentions in the written decision, not reasons for the outcome. A denied issue can mention a doctor's opinion just as a granted one does. Whether the opinion was for or against the claim, and the reasons it gave, are not something these counts can see. Each item is counted for the whole decision, so it may concern another issue decided in the same document.
Claimed together
A pair gets its own page once it appears at least 100 times and the Board decided at least 20 of them. Pairs below that are in the data but have no page.
Claimed as secondary to scars
Lower back conditions secondary to scars
Since 2019: 21 issues paired, 67 percent granted of the ones decided
Depression or anxiety secondary to scars
Since 2019: 40 issues paired, 38 percent granted of the ones decided
Arthritis secondary to scars
Since 2019: 24 issues paired, 47 percent granted of the ones decided
Knee conditions secondary to scars
Since 2019: 17 issues paired, 14 percent granted of the ones decided
Scars claimed as secondary to something else
Five recent decisions about scars
- June 29, 2026Denied
Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 10 percent disabling for abdominal scars
Read the decision at VA.gov - June 29, 2026Denied
Entitlement to service connection for lumbar spine surgical scars, claimed as secondary to a lumbar spine disability
Read the decision at VA.gov - June 25, 2026Denied
Entitlement to service connection for Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) with scars
Read the decision at VA.gov - June 22, 2026Granted
Entitlement to a compensable rating for the for right shoulder surgical scars prior to September 25, 2023
Read the decision at VA.gov - June 18, 2026Granted
Entitlement to a disability rating of 20 percent, but no higher, for service-connected painful scar, bone and cartilage donor graft site pinna right ear and occipital region, from August 11, 2025 onward
Read the decision at VA.gov
What this means for you
The schedule rates scars by area, by how many are painful or unstable on exam, and for the head, face, and neck by disfigurement. A scar that is painful when the examiner presses it, or that keeps breaking open, is what the higher rating turns on.
For a first claim, the link is the wound or surgery in service. A service record of the injury or the operation, and a current exam that measures the scar, are what the claim rests on.
For a higher rating, bring the measurements. The exam should record the size of each scar, whether it is deep or superficial, whether it is painful or unstable, and for the face any of the features the schedule lists for disfigurement.
Keep reading
Board decisions by condition
Every condition family and the secondary pairs that appeared most, counted from 1,479,738 Board decisions.
How to Read a Board of Veterans' Appeals Decision
Where VA Board decisions live and how to read one in ten minutes, using a real back case.
Lay Evidence and Buddy Statements That Hold Up at the Board
Who can write a statement for you, what they can say, and how the VA weighs it, with prompts for knee, back, sleep apnea, and PTSD.
Free to use. The written playbook is $49.99 once, when it ships.
An issue is counted in a family by its diagnostic code or by the words in the issue. One issue can be counted in more than one family. Percent granted is of the ones the Board decided, so remands and dismissals are left out. The example decisions are recent ones we could link whose issue names this condition, chosen so that both outcomes are shown when we have them. Reopened claims and effective-date disputes are left out. Past decisions do not predict yours. Each page states the decisions from 2019 on, and says so, unless the Board decided too few of them since 2019 to give a percentage worth reading. Where that happens the page counts every year instead and tells you it has. This page is education, not legal advice. Rules quoted are from 38 CFR Parts 3 and 4, as published on the government's eCFR website. Board decisions are public records, linked at their source.