The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected conditions did not substantially or materially contribute to his death, and thus denied the claim for service connection for cause of death.
The deciding factor: The VA physician provided an opinion stating that the Veteran's lobar pneumonia was a bacterial complication superimposed on his COPD, and in no way related to his service-connected abdominal adhesions. The daughter's opinion is not considered competent evidence as she lacks specialized medical knowledge regarding infectious diseases or pathology.
- Claimed conditions
- bowel incontinence, loss of use of both legs due to gunshot wound, peritoneal adhesions due to gunshot wound, cystitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 7, 2010
- Citation
- 1017016
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 1017016.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of service connection for a bilateral foot disorder, an acquired psychiatric disorder, a skin disorder, and a sleep disorder, as well as an evaluation in excess of 10 percent for cystitis, due to the need for further development.
- Dismissed
The appeals for a compensable evaluation for bladder incontinence and bowel incontinence have been withdrawn and dismissed.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of April 24, 2014, for service connection for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, a rating of 40 percent from April 24, 2014 to August 13, 2020 for the back disability, and a separate rating for bowel incontinence associated with the back disability.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bowel and urinary incontinence, both secondary to the appellant's service-connected lumbar spine disability.
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