The Board found no evidence of a current upper respiratory disorder related to active service and denied the veteran's claim.
The deciding factor: There is no competent medical evidence indicating that the veteran had any chronic upper respiratory disorder during his active service or that it was incurred therein.
- Claimed conditions
- upper respiratory disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2002
- Citation
- 0217808
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 0217808.
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 service connection for an upper respiratory disorder, to include as due to exposure to environmental hazards during the Persian Gulf War, as there was no current diagnosis of such a condition.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to outstanding medical records and the need for a new VA examination and opinion. The Veteran's claim is being reviewed again as he seeks service connection for an upper respiratory disorder, claimed as sinusitis.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for a sleep disorder (including obstructive sleep apnea) and an upper respiratory disorder (including sinusitis, allergic rhinitis, and seasonal allergies), finding that the Veteran did not have current diagnoses of these conditions. The Board also found no evidence to support presumptive service connection due to exposure to fine particulate matter.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal, satisfied with the recent rating decision that granted service connection for multiple disabilities previously on appeal.
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