The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the Veteran's claim of service connection for atrial fibrillation. The evidence is in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's atrial fibrillation was caused or aggravated by his service-connected diabetes mellitus.
The deciding factor: The positive nexus opinion from a VA examiner dated September 2008 and medical studies listing diabetes as a cause of atrial fibrillation are new and material evidence that raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Atrial Fibrillation
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- April 17, 2014
- Citation
- 1417182
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1417182.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
Service connection for OSA is granted, and the Veteran's initial ratings for atrial fibrillation, right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, right upper extremity neuralgia, and left upper extremity neuralgia are all granted at 10 percent.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for Congestive Heart Failure with Atrial Fibrillation with AICD and Hypertension (High Blood Pressure), finding that there was no evidence of direct service connection, and that the conditions were not caused or aggravated by service-connected OSA.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for SMC in excess of SMC(n) based on his service-connected conditions and additional disabilities, as well as his need for aid and attendance. The appeal was dismissed.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation as secondary to his service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder.
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