The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including rheumatic heart disease and left knee replacement, have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Board has granted TDIU based on the combined effects of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected disabilities preclude him from securing or following substantially gainful employment due to his physical limitations and mental health issues.
- Claimed conditions
- rheumatic heart disease, left total knee replacement (TKR), major depressive disorder with alcohol abuse in remission, left knee surgical scar associated with left TKR
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- August 3, 2015
- Citation
- 1532932
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 1532932.
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for service connection for rheumatic heart disease was granted. The claim for hypertensive vascular disease was remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for a temporary total rating and a 30 percent rating for his left knee TKR, finding that the evidence did not support these requests.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for glaucoma, Parkinson's disease, and dementia due to potential TERA exposure. The rating for bilateral hearing loss is also being remanded.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for an earlier effective date prior to November 2, 2017, and higher ratings for his heart disability and bilateral knee disabilities have been denied. The Board found that the earliest possible effective date is November 2, 2017, when VA received the claim after final disallowance. For the knee disabilities, the evidence did not show limitation of flexion to less than 30 degrees or more exacerbations per year.
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