The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection and a higher combined evaluation was denied. The Board found that the correct effective date is February 22, 2005, and his current combined evaluation of 40% is appropriate.
The deciding factor: The effective date for the award of service connection for TMJ syndrome and the assignment of a 10 percent disability rating was determined to be February 22, 2005. The Veteran's compensable service-connected disabilities (PTSD, hypertension, and TMJ syndrome) yield a current combined evaluation of 40%. The Combined Ratings Table used by VA for calculating combined evaluations does not allow for an increase in the combined rating based on the law.
- Claimed conditions
- Temporal mandibular joint syndrome, Posttraumatic stress disorder, Hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- October 18, 2011
- Citation
- 1138660
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 1138660.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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