The Board denied the claims for service connection for the cause of death, entitlement to DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, and entitlement to Dependents' Educational Assistance under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35 due to lack of evidence showing a direct relationship between the veteran's service-connected conditions and his death.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the primary cause of the veteran's death was congestive heart failure due to coronary artery disease, which was not incurred in or aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- immobile right ankle, residuals arthrodesis right knee with loss of extension and flexion, traumatic arthritis, postoperative neuromas and osteophyte, postsurgical right lower quadrant neuralgia, appendectomy scar, malaria
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- April 7, 2004
- Citation
- 0409058
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,377 · Granted: 17% (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 0409058.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient detail in a previous VA medical opinion regarding whether malaria or scarlet fever during service contributed to the Veteran's death. The case must be returned for further evaluation.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for malaria was dismissed because the November 17, 2025 request for Board review came before the September 16, 2025 higher-level review of the same issue had been completed.
- Dismissed
The appeal has been dismissed due to the death of the Appellant, and no decision can be made on the underlying claims.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to duty-to-assist errors and additional examinations are required. The AOJ will also request clarification from the Veteran regarding his claim for malaria.
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