The Board has determined that the Veteran's digestive disorders, including GERD, hiatal hernia, and gastritis, are not related to service. The preponderance of evidence is against finding a link between these conditions and any incident during service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's diagnosed digestive disorders are not related to service, based on the absence of chronicity in service and the lack of etiological relationship to sea sickness episodes reported by the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), hiatal hernia, gastritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 11, 2013
- Citation
- 1329123
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 1329123.
What this means for you
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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 due to unclear evidence regarding the diagnosis of gastritis and its relation to service. The Veteran needs to provide records, and a VA examiner will review his medical history and determine if gastritis is related to his military service or any other conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for Dupuytren's contracture of the left hand, right hand, and GERD is remanded due to inadequate VA examination opinions and failure to consider toxic exposure risk activities during service.
- Denied
The Veteran's GERD is currently rated at 10 percent disabling, but the Board found that his symptoms do not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher rating.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), finding that both conditions are secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lower back condition and sinusitis, respectively.
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