The Board found that the veteran's service-connected conditions did not cause or contribute substantially to his death from arteriosclerotic heart disease.
The deciding factor: VA medical opinions indicated that the veteran's service-connected conditions, including retained foreign bodies and muscle injuries, were not significant enough to have caused his arteriosclerotic heart disease.
- Claimed conditions
- Pleural cavity injury, Injury to Muscle Group IV
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- April 8, 2002
- Citation
- 0203192
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0203192.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for his increased ratings of PTSD and pleural cavity injury, finding that new and material evidence was not received within one year of the June 26, 2006 rating decisions.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD is denied. The claim for special monthly compensation based on the need for aid and attendance of another person is also denied.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for various GSW residuals and assigned an initial disability rating of 50 percent for the MG II, III, IV GSW residuals.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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