The Board denied the appellant's claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence linking any service-connected disability or alcohol abuse to the veteran's death.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing a link between any service-connected condition and the veteran's death. The Board also found that the appellant's statements regarding the cause of death were not competent medical evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- End stage liver disease, Pneumonia and respiratory failure, Adynamic ileus, Abdominal distension
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2006
- Citation
- 0607951
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,458 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0607951.
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: Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for cause of death due to end stage renal failure and end stage liver disease, finding that there is no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder and tinnitus, while denying service connection for various other disabilities including the right ankle, left ankle, right shoulder, left shoulder, right knee, left knee, heart, respiratory, kidney, venous thrombosis, urinary hesitancy, acute metabolic encephalopathy, hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea, sleep disturbance, abdominal distension, atherosclerotic peripheral vascular disease, neurological disability, chronic fatigue syndrome, erectile dysfunction, stroke, skin disability, fibromyalgia, bilateral foot pain, hammer toes, tinea pedis, meningitis, GERD, traumatic brain injury, and irritable bowel syndrome. The Board also remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss and a back disability.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's death was caused by end stage liver disease, which the Board found to be related to alcohol abuse rather than service-connected hypertension. The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted a compensable rating (10%) for the Veteran's residual scar from an appendectomy and found that his chronic abdominal pain, distension, and bowel disturbance are not service-connected.
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