The Board has granted the veteran's claim for service connection of residuals of a right thoracotomy, decortication and pneumonia as secondary to his service-connected right knee disability. The appeal regarding compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 is dismissed.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the veteran's pneumonia with thoracotomy was not caused by the arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, but acknowledged it could have been a reasonably foreseeable event associated with surgery.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of right thoracotomy, respiratory disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 20, 2004
- Citation
- 0410208
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,012 · Granted: 24% (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 0410208.
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 has determined that the claims for service connection must be remanded due to inadequate examinations and opinions. The Veteran's skin disorder, respiratory disorder, Crohn's disease, eye disorder, and migraines are all being reviewed again with new medical evaluations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a respiratory disorder, including COPD and emphysema, is being remanded due to the submission of new and relevant evidence. The Board finds that the evidence submitted tends to disprove a link between his current condition and active service.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a respiratory disorder is dismissed. Service connection for right hand palmar nodule and service connection for a right hand scar are granted, but the issue of service connection for a right hand disorder other than service-connected right hand palmar nodule is remanded.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all issues of service connection due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.
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