The Board denied service connection for all claimed conditions as there was no evidence of a chronic condition in service or within the applicable presumptive period, and no competent medical evidence linking any current disability to active duty.
The deciding factor: The weight of the evidence does not support a finding that any of the Veteran's claimed conditions were incurred during active duty, despite his assertions. The first diagnosis for each condition occurred many years after discharge from service, and no health care professional has established a nexus between active duty and the current disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder, Eye disorder (optic neuropathy with decreased visual field), Gastrointestinal disorder (ulcer), Kidney disorder, Bladder disorder, Residuals of heat stroke, Cardiovascular disorder (coronary artery disease), Cervical spine disorder, Low back disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 6, 2009
- Citation
- 0908480
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 Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding a causal relationship between the condition and an in-service incident of military sexual trauma (MST).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an increased rating for allergic rhinitis and remanded the claims for cervical spine, hip, thigh, and hip extension disorders for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 29, 2019 for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder but denied earlier effective dates and increased ratings for other conditions.
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