The Board has denied the claim for service connection for cause of death due to lack of evidence showing a direct link between the veteran's service-connected conditions and his death. The DIC claim under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 was also denied as there is no evidence that the veteran had been continuously rated totally disabled by reason of service-connected disabilities for at least ten years immediately preceding his death.
The deciding factor: The medical records do not establish a direct link between the veteran's service-connected conditions and his cause of death, which includes chronic anemia, renal failure, Alzheimer's disease, myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, and peripheral vascular insufficiency.
- Claimed conditions
- gunshot wound, right thigh, left frozen foot, right frozen foot, osteopenia of the left foot, demineralization of the right foot
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 17, 2008
- Citation
- 0819801
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 0819801.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities require him to seek the aid and attendance of another person on a daily basis, leading to a grant of special monthly compensation based on need for aid and attendance/housebound status.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has ordered additional development to clarify the cause of death and assess whether service-related conditions contributed to the Veteran's death. The case is now remanded for further action.
- Granted
The veteran's claim for service connection for gunshot wound, right thigh, was reopened and granted based on new evidence.
- 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.
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