The Board denied service connection for a heart disability in March 1952, and the veteran appealed. The RO granted service connection for aortic regurgitation and status post aortic valve prosthesis effective April 1, 1989. The veteran requested an earlier effective date based on his October 1951 affidavit, but this was not considered as it did not meet the requirements of an informal claim.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence of active rheumatic fever or other active cardiac pathology during service and denied service connection for a heart disability. The veteran's request for an earlier effective date based on his October 1951 affidavit was not considered as it did not meet the requirements of an informal claim.
- Claimed conditions
- heart disease, aortic regurgitation, status post aortic valve prosthesis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 9, 2001
- Citation
- 0124362
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 0124362.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for an eye condition, hearing loss, heart disease, arthritis, and diabetes due to a regulatory duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for GERD as secondary to the Veteran's PTSD and tinnitus, but denied service connection for a lumbar spine disability, right ear hearing loss, chronic sinus condition, bilateral hand condition, jaw condition, aortic regurgitation, discoid lupus, residuals of peptic ulcer, left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition, cervical spine disability, left upper extremity (LUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability, and right upper extremity (RUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for ischemic heart disease, heart disease, and congestive heart failure as not being related to the Veteran's active service. The Board also denied an earlier effective date for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for heart disease and diabetes mellitus to obtain additional medical opinions.
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