The Board found that the veteran's anxiety disorder did not cause or contribute to his death, and that myasthenia gravis, which was a service-connected condition, aggravated by his pre-existing anxiety disorder, caused his death. The VA medical opinions supported this conclusion.
The deciding factor: VA medical opinions concluded that the veteran's anxiety disorder did not cause his death but rather contributed to his hypertension, which in turn contributed to his death from myasthenia gravis.
- Claimed conditions
- Anxiety disorder, Myasthenia gravis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- July 21, 2004
- Citation
- 0419729
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0419729.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and depressive disorder. The evidence is at least in balance regarding whether his current conditions are related to his military service.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected anxiety disorder, lumbar strain with degenerative arthritis, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy contributed to his death from congestive heart failure. The claim for DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is denied as the Veteran did not meet the criteria of having a combined rating of at least one year immediately preceding death.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for thymoma, thyroid nodule, Myasthenia gravis, splenic calcified granuloma, hepatic calcified granuloma, and calcified pleural granuloma, all of which are related to toxic environmental exposures during active naval service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has denied service connection for a psychiatric disability to include PTSD and an anxiety disorder, other than the service-connected insomnia disorder. The claims for recurrent right shoulder disability, recurrent left shoulder disability, and obstructive sleep apnea are remanded.
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