The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the cause of the Veteran's death and whether his service-connected conditions contributed to or accelerated any existing health issues. The appellant contends that PTSD exacerbated his renal condition, which in turn caused his death.
The deciding factor: A medical opinion is required to address the relationship between the Veteran's service-connected conditions and his death.
- Claimed conditions
- left ureteral colic, chronic obstructive airway disease (presumed due to respiratory failure), hypertension (presumed due to coronary artery disease), coronary artery disease (presumed due to hypertension and coronary artery disease), chronic ischemic heart disease (presumed due to coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure), respiratory failure (presumed due to chronic obstructive airway disease)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 4, 2013
- Citation
- 1318083
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 1318083.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA and private medical records, arranging for a pathologist's review of the Veteran's death, and providing an opinion on the causes of his death.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
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