The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death, concluding that his POW captivity did not contribute to his heart disease or renal failure-induced cardiac arrest.
The deciding factor: The VA physician concluded that the veteran's POW captivity did not contribute to his death from coronary heart disease/renal failure-induced cardiac arrest under any theory advanced by the appellant.
- Claimed conditions
- Cardiac Arrest, Coronary Heart Disease, Renal Failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- May 11, 2005
- Citation
- 0512845
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 0512845.
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 granted a 30 percent rating for coronary heart disease effective February 10, 2021. The Veteran's condition did not meet the criteria for an earlier effective date or increased rating.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's death was caused by his conditions (Ventricular Fibrillation, Cardiac Arrest, and Heart Failure), which the Board finds may have been exacerbated or worsened due to VA treatment. The Board is remanding the case for a new medical opinion to determine if VA negligence contributed to the Veteran's death.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for Coronary Heart Disease and Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 as the evidence did not show an in-service injury or disease related to these conditions. The Veteran's claims were also not supported by exposure to herbicide agents.
- Whole decision: Granted
Service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, due to ischemic heart disease and coronary heart disease, is granted based on presumed exposure to herbicides during service at U-Tapao RTAFB in Thailand.
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