The Board has determined that the veteran's death was caused by diabetes mellitus, which is presumed to be related to his service. As a result, the cause of the veteran's death is now considered service-connected.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinion indicated that the veteran's diabetes mellitus likely contributed to a catastrophic event of the central nervous system that caused cardiac arrhythmia, leading to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, cerebrovascular accidents, rapidly progressing dementia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 20, 2003
- Citation
- 0313434
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 0313434.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for hypertension and diabetes mellitus to obtain further medical opinions regarding their potential relationship to toxic exposures during active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and bilateral knee strain to obtain additional medical opinions.
- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for hypertension, atherosclerosis, and diabetes mellitus; granted service connection for erectile dysfunction and skin cancer; and restored the 10 percent rating for hypertension.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and sleep apnea to obtain a TERA opinion due to the Veteran's participation in a toxic exposure risk activity during his service in the Southwest Asia theater of operations.
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