The Board denied the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for dysphagia, a dental disability affecting teeth and gums, numbness of the lip and mouth, and hoarseness. The Court vacated this decision due to insufficient evidence addressing whether these conditions were incurred in or caused by military service.
The deciding factor: The Board relied on VA examinations that attributed the Veteran's conditions to other causes (periodontal disease, presbyesophagus, neurofibromatosis type 2) and did not address whether they were related to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- dysphagia, a dental disability affecting teeth and gums, numbness of the lip and mouth, hoarseness
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 24, 2014
- Citation
- 1403147
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 1403147.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted an effective date of January 8, 2020 for SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance due to service-connected chronic seronegative myasthenia gravis and hoarseness.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to missing records and a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The claims will be readjudicated after obtaining any necessary records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete medical records and a duty to assist error. The Veteran's gastrointestinal disorder claim will be reconsidered with the inclusion of all relevant private medical records.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for hiatal hernia with gastritis and dysphagia, finding that these conditions are related to the Veteran's active duty service.
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