The claim for service connection for periodontitis, claimed as gum disease, was dismissed as a matter of law because it is not compensable under the governing statute.
The deciding factor: Periodontal disease may only be considered service-connected for purposes of determining eligibility to dental treatment, but not for compensation purposes.
- Claimed conditions
- periodontitis, gum disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 25, 2009
- Citation
- 0907029
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
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 issue of entitlement to service connection for tooth decay and gum disease due to a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error regarding proper notification for an examination.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a right shoulder condition, bilateral toenail fungus and athlete's foot, pseudofolliculitis barbae, and furuncle incision and drainage healed scar (claimed as cyst removal on buttocks with scar), but denied an increased rating in excess of 50 percent for sleep apnea with asthma associated with allergic rhinitis. The claims for service connection for prostate cancer and gum disease were remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a dental condition, including loss of adult teeth and failing dentition.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for a dental disability for compensation purposes and remanded the claims for service connection for a dental disability for treatment purposes and gum disease.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.