The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that his service-connected disabilities did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
The deciding factor: A VA physician opined that it was unlikely that the veteran's service-connected residuals either caused or contributed substantially or materially to cause his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Depressive Disorder, Frozen Hands Residuals, Pes Planus, Residuals of Great Right Toe Amputation at Proximal Phalanx, Frostbite Residuals with Right Second Toe and Metatarsal Head Amputation, Frozen Feet Residuals with Left Foot Transmetatarsal Amputation
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 80%
- Decision date
- November 6, 2006
- Citation
- 0634286
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 0634286.
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 Board granted an initial increased rating of 50 percent for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability from March 8, 2010, to May 19, 2014, and denied a higher rating thereafter.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder of generalized anxiety disorder and depressive disorder, as secondary to the service-connected left ankle disability. Service connection was also granted for pseudofolliculitis barbae, and a 20 percent rating was assigned for left ankle achilles tendonitis from October 23, 2023.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for OSA, bilateral pes planus, hypertension, migraines headaches, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a lack of adequate medical evidence regarding their etiology.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include GAD and depressive disorder, as well as a cervical spine disability, right wrist pain, and left wrist pain. However, the claims for lumbar spine pain were denied.
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