The Board found that the cause of death, acute cor pulmonale due to pulmonary embolus, was not related to service-connected conditions and denied the claim for service connection for the cause of death.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that varicose veins did not give rise to pulmonary embolism based on their own, and myocardial infarction was more likely than pulmonary embolism as a cause of death.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute cor pulmonale, Peripheral vascular disease (PVD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 28, 2009
- Citation
- 0919986
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 0919986.
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
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