The Board denied the veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for chronic cough and GERD, both claimed as due to treatment at a VA facility in March 1992, finding no competent evidence of a relationship between these conditions and the treatment.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was no competent medical evidence linking the veteran's chronic cough or GERD to his March 1992 VA surgical treatment, including intubation during shoulder surgery. The most recent examination indicated that GERD is not caused by trauma or intubation and that the veteran's current GERD is unrelated to service.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic cough, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 7, 2003
- Citation
- 0303973
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · Granted: 17% (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 0303973.
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 various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for PTSD and a chronic cough are being remanded due to an error in providing notice of the right to a hearing before the RO.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for sinusitis and remanded the Veteran's claims for chronic lower back pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, neck pain, and GERD.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and denied the claims for right knee disability, erectile dysfunction, GERD, sleep apnea, and hypertension. The decision is remanded for further action on these issues.
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