The Board found that the veteran's claimed upper gastrointestinal disorders did not begin during or are causally linked to service. The preponderance of evidence is against the claims for service connection.
The deciding factor: There was no competent medical evidence showing a diagnosis of an upper gastrointestinal disorder until decades after service, and there were no findings linking these conditions to service.
- Claimed conditions
- peptic ulcer disease, hiatal hernia with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 3, 2002
- Citation
- 0202995
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 0202995.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for peptic ulcer disease and denied service connection for a low back disability, with some issues remanded.
- Dismissed
The appeal was dismissed due to the Veteran's death while it was pending before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, as well as remanded several other claims for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board denied a higher disability rating for the Veteran's hiatal hernia with GERD and remanded the claim for service connection for essential thrombocythemia.
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