The veteran's cause of death was due to cardiopulmonary arrest, which resulted from myocardial infarction and ischemic cardiomyopathy. None of his service-connected conditions were found to be the principal or contributory cause of his death.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that it is not at least as likely as not that any of the veteran's service-connected conditions (PTSD, shell fragment wounds) caused or contributed to his death from heart disease.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiopulmonary arrest, myocardial infarction, ischemic cardiomyopathy, coronary artery disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 22, 2004
- Citation
- 0402236
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 0402236.
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for coronary artery disease, which is presumed related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, diabetes mellitus, type II, left eye diabetic retinopathy, left foot diabetic peripheral neuropathy, right foot diabetic peripheral neuropathy, and coronary artery disease, as well as the Veteran's cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for coronary artery disease to correct duty to assist errors, as there are no adequate medical opinions of record.
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