The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for service-connected residuals of pneumonia was denied as the current pulmonary disease is attributed to a long history of smoking, not related to his service-connected pneumonia.
The deciding factor: The pulmonologist concluded that the Veteran's COPD is unrelated to the pneumonia he had in October 1952 while on active duty and is instead due to his extensive history of smoking.
- Claimed conditions
- Residuals of Pneumonia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- December 2, 2009
- Citation
- 0945844
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 0945844.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's current hearing impairment is related to noise exposure during his military service.,Service connection was also granted for residuals of pneumonia. The Board found no evidence linking the Veteran's current respiratory conditions to his service.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's current pulmonary disability, including residuals of pneumonia, COPD, restrictive lung disease, and pulmonary fibrosis, is not related to service. The current disability was also not proximately due to or made worse by his service-connected GERD.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's current respiratory disorder, diagnosed as COPD, was not present in service and is not related to his military service.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the appellant's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, bronchial asthma, allergic rhinitis, residuals of pneumonia, and PTSD are denied. The claim for allergic rhinitis is granted based on aggravation of a pre-existing condition.
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