The Board found that the cause of death was a subdural hematoma caused by blunt force trauma, but service connection for the cause of death is not established as neither hypertensive cardiovascular disease nor COPD were present in service or until years thereafter and are not etiologically related to service.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that the veteran's gastrectomy residuals did not contribute substantially or materially to his death, and neither hypertensive cardiovascular disease nor COPD was present in service or until years thereafter and is not etiologically related to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Subdural hematoma, Hypertensive cardiovascular disease, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2005
- Citation
- 0500031
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,325 · Granted: 31% (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 0500031.
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- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a higher level of SMC was denied as the Board found that he is already in receipt of SMC at the (l) rate based on need for regular aid and attendance due to service-connected disabilities, including coronary artery disease with congestive heart failure. A second award of SMC at the (l) rate based on need for regular aid and attendance was not warranted.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between the Veteran's military service and his death from gastrointestinal bleeding and hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
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