The veteran's skin disability, including acne with hypopigmented macules and a residual scar from an excised tumor, was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service. The Board found no reasonable basis to grant the benefit sought on appeal.
The deciding factor: Clinical evidence linking the veteran's various skin disorders (excluding his service-connected scars) is lacking, and the only opinion of record is that of the veteran himself, who is a layperson without medical qualifications.
- Claimed conditions
- acne, hypopigmented macules, scar
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 17, 2003
- Citation
- 0328030
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 0328030.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including bilateral plantar fasciitis, chronic pain syndrome, sciatic radicular pain of both legs, traumatic brain injury (TBI), shin splints of both legs, thoracic spondylosis, right shoulder strain, right wrist strain, acne, and allergic rhinitis.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for acne to obtain an addendum opinion addressing whether the Veteran's condition was aggravated by his service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood, but denied service connection for acne. The claim for hypertension was remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 10 percent rating for hypopigmented macules and denied service connection for hypercholesterolemia, while remanding several other claims for further development.
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