The Board has determined that the service-connected lumbar spine arthritis and the medication taken to alleviate its symptoms contributed substantially and materially to the Veteran's death, leading to his abdominal aortic aneurysm which required surgical repair. As such, the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
The deciding factor: The chronic use of Percocet due to service-connected lumbar spine arthritis led to cardiovascular and pulmonary problems that made the abdominal aortic aneurysm repair a physiologically challenging operation, contributing substantially and materially to the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine arthritis, cervical spine arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 11, 2013
- Citation
- 1322238
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 1322238.
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 Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar spine arthritis is aggravated by his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for increased disability ratings for lumbar spine arthritis and right lower extremity sciatica have been dismissed due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his appeal.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a neck/cervical spine disability, finding that his current condition is at least as likely as not related to active duty service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy have been granted. Additionally, the Veteran's sleep apnea has also been granted as secondary to his service-connected disabilities.
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