The Board found no evidence of a service-connected condition that caused or contributed to the veteran's death, and thus denied both the claim for service connection for cause of death and the eligibility for DEA under Chapter 35.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing a definitive diagnosis of any of the conditions listed on the death certificate as contributing to the veteran's death that was related to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Klebsiella empyema, chronic pleural effusions, cirrhosis of liver, colon polyps, esophageal varices
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 5, 2007
- Citation
- 0731454
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 0731454.
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 has granted service connection for hepatitis C and its secondary effects on other conditions, including cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes mellitus type II, esophageal varices, hepatic encephalopathy, and splenomegaly.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, chronic ear infections, chronic allergic rhinitis, colon polyps, squamous cell carcinoma, and chronic headaches (to include as due to sinusitis) based on the lack of current diagnoses.,The Veteran's assertions were not considered competent evidence regarding his claimed conditions.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for bruising due to lack of a current diagnosis. The claims for breast tumors, gall bladder condition, and colon polyps are remanded as the evidence does not include an opinion on their relationship to active duty service or any toxic exposures.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for hepatitis C and liver cirrhosis due to insufficient reasons or bases provided in previous decisions, specifically regarding the presence of haptic encephalopathy and incapacitating episodes.
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