The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, as renal failure, hyperkalemia, multi-system organ failure, sepsis, post-operative coronary bypass, and aortic arch aneurysm repair were not incurred or aggravated in service and did not contribute substantially to his death.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the veteran's service-connected left ear hearing loss did not cause his death or contribute materially to the cause of his death. Additionally, the conditions leading to his death had their onset long after service and were unrelated to his military service or any incident therein.
- Claimed conditions
- renal failure, hyperkalemia, multi-system organ failure, sepsis, post-operative coronary bypass, aortic arch aneurysm repair
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2009
- Citation
- 0900865
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a VA medical opinion to determine if the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including medications taken therefor, were a substantial or contributing factor in his death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for cause of death to obtain a new medical opinion due to errors in previous examinations.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including renal failure, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction, blackout spells, swelling of the eyelids, diminished eyesight, sleep deprivation, and bladder incontinence. The Board also denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for left ankle tendonitis associated with residual scar.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for cause of death and dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) benefits due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding the appeal for service connection for cause of death.
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