The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, specifically the residuals of fractures to the left tibia and fibula and the left femur, substantially or materially contributed to his death due to drowning. As such, service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
The deciding factor: The service-connected disabilities caused by the Veteran's fractures contributed to his inability to regain footing in a creek, which led to his drowning and subsequent death.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of fracture of the left tibia and fibula, residuals of fracture to the left femur
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2009
- Citation
- 0947920
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 0947920.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claims for service connection for residuals of a fracture of the left tibia and fibula, osteomyelitis, and sleep apnea have been granted.,The Veteran's claim for increased rating for recurrent dislocation of the right shoulder with osteoarthritis has been remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and a VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for TDIU is being remanded due to the need for additional development and consideration of his service-connected disabilities, employment history, educational attainment, and other factors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board is remanding the case to consider whether the veteran may be entitled to separate ratings for his left knee and ankle disabilities, or additional ratings based on service-connected disability of the left ankle and knee.
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