COPD Board decisions

The Board found that the veteran's COPD is attributable to his tobacco use during service, specifically his long history of smoking 2-3 packs of cigarettes per day and a smoke inhalation injury in 1994.

The veteran does not have a chronic pulmonary disorder, including COPD and shortness of breath, as a result of VA treatment. The Board finds that the preponderance of evidence is against his claim.

The VA denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death, finding that his death was not due to a condition attributable to tobacco use during service.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected respiratory disability is being remanded due to the need for additional development under the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA).

The Board denied the claim for service connection for COPD and Arteriosclerotic heart disease, finding that there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between these conditions and the veteran's military service.

The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there was no evidence showing a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by service caused the veteran's death.

The Board found that the cause of the veteran's death was not due to a service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of death.

The Board denied service connection for COPD as secondary to a service-connected disability and denied service connection for PTSD. The veteran's COPD was not found to be proximately due to or the result of his service-connected residuals of a canister injury to the right interscapular region of the chest, and there is no evidence of record supporting a diagnosis of PTSD.

The Board denied the claim as there was no evidence of nicotine dependence in service, and COPD did not result from tobacco use during military service. The cause of death was attributed to end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and pneumonia.

The VA denied a compensable rating for the veteran's service-connected post-operative bilateral pneumothoraxes with emphysema and COPD, citing his FEV-1 of 84.6 percent of predicted value.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a lung disorder on both direct and presumptive bases, including due to Agent Orange exposure. The evidence did not meet the criteria for reopening the claim or establishing service connection.

The veteran's COPD is service-connected as secondary to nicotine dependence. The nervous condition (claimed as fatigue) is not service-connected.

The Board found that the veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death.

The Board denied service connection for corneal opacities and conjunctivitis due to mustard gas exposure, but granted an increased rating of 50% for bilateral pes cavus.

The Board denied the appellant's application to reopen her claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that new and material evidence was not submitted.

The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities was granted with an effective date of January 21, 2000.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for service connection for COPD with shortness of breath, finding no evidence linking his current condition to his military service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's asthma was incurred in service and granted service connection for it. However, the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease did not manifest during or as a result of service and is denied.

The veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and he did not meet the criteria for educational assistance benefits or accrued benefits. The VA burial benefit claim is pending as his body has been held by a state.

The Board found that the veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim.