The Board has determined that the veteran's death was not caused or contributed to by any service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of death.
The deciding factor: No competent medical evidence established a causal relationship between the veteran's death and his periods of service or any service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiovascular disease (including congestive heart failure or peripheral vascular disease), left index finger disability, mechanical low back pain with facet sclerosis at L4-L5 and loss of disc space height at T12-L1
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 6, 2005
- Citation
- 0518357
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 0518357.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal of a 10% rating for left index finger disability since July 12, 2016 is dismissed because the initial decision was not an 'initial decision' under the AMA and proper procedures were not followed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for chronic dry eye, chronic fatigue syndrome, constipation, IBS, left little finger disability, left index finger disability, left thumb disability, left ring finger disability, left long finger disability, right ring finger disability, right index finger disability, right long finger disability, and right thumb disability due to an error in the initial decision. The Veteran was not provided with notice of her right to a hearing on these issues.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple conditions have been withdrawn. The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a back disability, right knee disability, and left knee disability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for left eye and left index finger disabilities due to incomplete development of records, including VA and private treatment records. The Veteran's left eye disability may be related to his active service exposure through all applicable military deployments, as well as his obesity which could have contributed to its onset or progression.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.