The Board has determined that the Veteran's complaints of difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, and chest pain do not meet the criteria for service connection due to lack of a clinically significant heart abnormality.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no current or ongoing cardiomegaly, no significant valve problems, trivial tricuspid and mitral regurgitation are normal variants, and the heart being normal in size with no wall thickening and no dilation do not indicate a clinically significant heart abnormality at this time.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiomegaly, heart disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 31, 2011
- Citation
- 1140376
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1140376.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's hypertension was granted service connection effective August 10, 2022. The heart disability was granted secondary to the hypertension.,An initial rating of 30% for the heart disability was granted in May 2023 and increased to 60% since October 22, 2024.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating higher than 30 percent for cardiomegaly with cardiac hypertrophy and valvular heart disease has been dismissed due to the appellant withdrawing the appeal.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a heart disability, finding that it is secondary to the Veteran's service-connected PTSD.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for cervical spine disability, heart disability, and rheumatoid arthritis due to procedural errors in obtaining necessary medical opinions.
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