The Board found that the Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, nor could it be attributed to herbicide exposure. The cause of death listed on his death certificate was superventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation.
The deciding factor: The autopsy did not find evidence of lung cancer or other conditions that would support the appellant's claims for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Chondrosarcoma midsternum, Superventricular tachycardia, Ventricular fibrillation, Heart enlargement, Dilated cardiomyopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 22, 2009
- Citation
- 0923419
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 0923419.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
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 hypertension and dilated cardiomyopathy, finding that there is no evidence to support a nexus between these conditions and his military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death is not related to service, and the appellant did not file a claim for accrued benefits within one year of his death.,Survivors pension was denied due to the appellant exceeding the applicable maximum annual pension rates (MAPRs).,Accrued benefits were denied as the appellant did not file an accrued benefit claim within one year of the Veteran's death.
- Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by congestive heart failure due to (or as a consequence of) dilated cardiomyopathy, with significant contributing conditions including aspiration pneumonia and pulmonary fibrosis. Service connection for the cause of death has been granted.,Asbestos exposure in service is conceded, and a VA medical opinion supports the conclusion that asbestos exposure contributed substantially to the Veteran's cause of death.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was determined to be due to his service-connected tracheostomy scar, which complicated intubation and caused aspiration pneumonia with hypercapnic and hypoxic respiratory failure. The Board granted DIC benefits based on this determination.
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