The Board finds that the Veteran's service-connected bronchial asthma, which required treatment including steroids like Prednisone, contributed to his death from liver disease and esophageal varices. The conflicting medical opinions are in relative equipoise.
The deciding factor: Prednisone use for asthma significantly increased the occurrence rate of esophageal varices in this Veteran with decompensated cirrhosis.
- Claimed conditions
- Bronchial asthma, Liver cirrhosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- June 29, 2012
- Citation
- 1222821
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 1222821.
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 bronchial asthma has been rated at 30% since January 7, 2004. The Board has now granted a 60% rating effective from November 14, 2024, based on the evidence showing FEV-1/FVC of 40 to 55 percent during the appeal period.
- Denied
The Veteran's bronchial asthma is rated at 60 percent since March 31, 1997. The Board found the current rating of 60 percent to be correct based on post-bronchodilator FEV-1 and FVC measurements.
- Denied
The Veteran's bronchial asthma was rated at 30 percent since November 13, 2019. The VA found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under Diagnostic Code (DC) 6602.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities, including a low back disability, neck disability, nerve damage of the neck, back, and hip, liver cirrhosis, stroke, migraines, ovarian disability, heart disability, seizure disorder, and right ear disability.
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