The veteran died of emphysema and arteriosclerotic heart disease, but service connection was not established for these conditions. The appellant's claim is denied as the cause of death is attributable to tobacco use during service.
The deciding factor: Service connection could not be granted because the causes of death (emphysema and arteriosclerotic heart disease) were found to be due to tobacco use during service, which is prohibited under VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- Emphysema, Arteriosclerotic heart disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 23, 2004
- Citation
- 0410641
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,514 · Granted: 19% (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 0410641.
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- Granted
The Veteran was granted a TDIU with a September 19, 2024 effective date based on his PTSD, emphysema, and COPD symptoms. His diabetes, tinnitus, and left ear hearing loss were not found to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to March 19, 2024.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was listed as emphysema, but the Board found no causal connection to service or a service-connected disability. The Veteran did not meet the criteria for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
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