The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of a recurrent pilonidal cyst, finding that the earliest date of receipt of his application was February 5, 2001.
The deciding factor: The effective date for the grant of service connection may not be earlier than the date of claim due to the provisions in 38 U.S.C.A. § 5110 and 38 C.F.R. § 3.400.
- Claimed conditions
- recurrent pilonidal cyst
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 22, 2004
- Citation
- 0410405
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 292 · Granted: 21% (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 0410405.
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 Veteran's residuals of a pilonidal cyst, post-operative are currently rated at 10 percent and the evidence does not support an increase to a higher rating.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for residuals of recurrent pilonidal cysts was granted, while his claim for a compensable evaluation for service-connected residuals of left herniorrhaphy was denied. The decision is mixed as it addresses both conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted a 30 percent rating for the appellant's recurrent pilonidal cyst, effective from April 21, 1998.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.