The Board found that the veteran's death was due to end-stage cirrhosis of the liver with major risk factors including hepatitis C infection and alcohol abuse, but no disease or injury during active service caused or contributed to his death.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a medical history of multiple surgeries in Vietnam or any exposure to hepatitis C virus during service. The Board found that the veteran's service-connected headache disorder neither caused nor contributed to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- cirrhosis of the liver, hepatitis C infection, alcohol abuse
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 2, 2009
- Citation
- 0903563
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,710 · Granted: 15% (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 0903563.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for unspecified depressive disorder with anxious distress and alcohol abuse, finding that there is no evidence of a current disability or a link to active service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for cirrhosis of the liver has been dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- 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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for service connection for alcohol abuse and drug abuse, as well as a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD, were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating or secondary service connection.
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