The veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected condition, and the evidence does not show that a service-connected disability contributed substantially or materially to his death.
The deciding factor: The cause of death listed on the veteran's death certificate was coronary obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which is not service-connected. The VA medical records do not indicate any service connection for COPD, and there is no evidence that a service-connected condition contributed substantially or materially to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Osteoarthritis of cervical spine, Osteoarthritis of lumbar spine post laminectomy and diskectomy, Osteoarthritis of the left ankle, Osteoarthritis of the left knee, Osteoarthritis of the left shoulder, Osteoarthritis of the right ankle, Osteoarthritis of the right knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- March 29, 2004
- Citation
- 0408017
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,547 · Granted: 20% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0408017.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for osteoarthritis of the right ankle was granted with an initial evaluation of 10 percent effective September 17, 2018. The Board has now granted a higher rating but is remanding to determine if an even higher rating is warranted.
- Granted
The Board has granted an initial 40 percent rating for the Veteran's right ankle disability, finding that his symptoms more nearly approximated ankylosis in dorsiflexion at more than 10 degrees during flare-ups and after repetitive use over time.
- Denied
The Veteran's right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome and left wrist carpal tunnel syndrome are currently rated at 30 percent and 20 percent, respectively. The Board denied the claims for higher ratings as the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under DC 8515.,The Veteran's osteoarthritis of the right ankle and left ankle are both currently rated at 10 percent. The Board denied the claims for higher ratings as there is no evidence that meets the criteria for a higher rating under Diagnostic Codes 5003-5271.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for degenerative joint disease of the left and right knee, osteoarthritis of the left shoulder, a right shoulder condition, and intervertebral disc disorder of the spine as there is no evidence to support that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by military service.
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