The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for filariasis and special monthly compensation based on need of regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected spinal cord atrophy with idiopathic paraplegia, as there is no evidence showing that filariasis was incurred in or aggravated by service. The veteran's current 10% rating for the service-connected condition does not meet the requirements for special monthly compensation based on need of regular aid and attendance.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there is no competent medical evidence linking the claimed filariasis to service, nor did it find any evidence showing that the veteran's spinal cord atrophy with idiopathic paraplegia was due to exposure to Agent Orange or another service connection basis. The veteran's current rating for his service-connected condition does not meet the requirements for special monthly compensation based on need of regular aid and attendance.
- Claimed conditions
- filariasis, spinal cord atrophy with idiopathic paraplegia with residuals from gunshot wound to the right hip
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 28, 2003
- Citation
- 0301586
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,012 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0301586.
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: Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by a service-connected condition (psychiatric disability), and the claim for cause of death is granted.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's DIC benefits claim based on a June 2000 rating decision assigning a February 8, 2000 effective date for a 100% rating for lymphatic filariasis was denied as the appellant did not meet the criteria for entitlement to DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his anxiety, malaria, and filariasis did not contribute to his myocardial infarction.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for filariasis of the legs is being remanded due to the need for clarification on whether he has any current residuals of the service-connected condition.
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