The Board has ordered the RO to obtain medical records from various facilities where the veteran was treated during his last weeks of life and to provide an opinion on whether service-connected duodenal ulcer disease contributed to the cause of death. The case is then to be returned for further consideration.
The deciding factor: The VA physician found that a relationship between the bleeding noted at the time of the veteran's death and his service-connected duodenal ulcer disease was not likely, but more records are needed to make an informed decision.
- Claimed conditions
- duodenal ulcer disease, acute myocardial infarction, pulmonary fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 15, 2004
- Citation
- 0415264
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 0415264.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's pulmonary fibrosis is related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for pulmonary fibrosis as there is no evidence of a current diagnosis.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to duty-to-assist errors, including obtaining signed consent forms and an adequate medical opinion regarding the Veteran's lung complications.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a respiratory disorder, including interstitial lung disease, pulmonary fibrosis, asthma, and pulmonary asbestosis, due to in-service asbestos exposure.
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