The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's gastrointestinal disability, including hiatal hernia, reflux, and esophagitis, or bilateral inguinal hernias to service. The preponderance of the evidence does not support a grant of service connection for these conditions.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing that the veteran's gastrointestinal disability or bilateral inguinal hernias were incurred during active military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral inguinal hernias, Gastrointestinal disability (hiatal hernia, reflux, esophagitis)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 26, 2006
- Citation
- 0615344
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,377 · Granted: 17% (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 0615344.
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.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's application to reopen his right ear hearing loss disability claim was granted. His bilateral inguinal hernias and lumbosacral spine DDD claims were denied, as well as an increased rating for the latter condition prior to August 9, 2022. The earlier effective date of February 19, 2016 for his right lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy claim was granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral inguinal hernias, post-laparoscopic repair with mesh and associated scars, are rated at a 20 percent disability rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for urinary tract infections, left hip disability, right foot tendonitis, and bilateral pes planus with plantar fasciitis as secondary to the Veteran's Peyronie's disease. The other claims were not addressed in detail.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
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.