The Board denied service connection for fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, and shortness of breath as undiagnosed illnesses due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's military service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not support a diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome or irritable bowel syndrome. Additionally, there was no evidence that the Veteran's respiratory complaints were related to her service, and the current COPD was attributed to smoking history rather than in-service events.
- Claimed conditions
- fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, shortness of breath
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 11, 2009
- Citation
- 0909088
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0909088.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the AOJ did not obtain all necessary opinions regarding whether the Veteran's symptoms are related to an undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multisymptom illness (MUCMI). The claims for service connection for fatigue, fibromyalgia, left elbow disorder, right elbow disorder, and sleep disorder are remanded for further development.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for adhesions as secondary to irritable bowel syndrome, finding that there was no nexus between the claimed condition and service or a service-connected disability.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for effective dates earlier than July 18, 2024, for the awards of service connection for tinnitus, tension headaches, and irritable bowel syndrome have been dismissed.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for depression, Gram Positive Cocci Condition, chronic bronchitis, irritable bowel syndrome, and diseases of Keratinization due to untimely filing of the Decision Review Request.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.