The Veteran's claim for service connection for a dental disorder, claimed as secondary to his service-connected esophageal carcinoma of the epiglottis, is denied because he does not have a current dental disability for which VA compensation benefits can be awarded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran does not have a current dental disability for purposes of VA compensation due to missing teeth that are replaceable and not compensable disabilities under VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- esophageal carcinoma, missing teeth
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 10, 2015
- Citation
- 1529690
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 1529690.
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 Veteran's claim for service connection for a dental condition, including tooth loss due to injury, is being remanded as the VA examination scheduled in March 2025 was not conducted due to the Veteran's failure to appear. The Board finds that the Veteran should be rescheduled for a new VA examination.
- Denied
The Veteran's service connection claim for a dental disorder, including missing teeth due to jaw surgery during service, was denied as the evidence did not support a finding of service trauma or malpractice.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's dental disability, including caries, missing teeth, and TMD/bruxism, is related to his active service. The Board has remanded the case for further examination and opinion regarding the etiology of these disabilities.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for Barrett's esophagitis, GERD, and esophageal carcinoma based on the Veteran's exposure to herbicides during active service in Vietnam.
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