The Board has granted service connection for a low back disability and a right inguinal hernia, finding that new and material evidence was submitted to reopen these claims. The claim for a respiratory disorder due to Agent Orange exposure is denied as there is no competent medical evidence linking the condition to service or Agent Orange exposure. The claim for sleep apnea is also denied as there is no current diagnosis of this condition.
The deciding factor: The Board found that new and material evidence had been submitted to reopen the claims for low back disability and right inguinal hernia, establishing service connection for these conditions. However, the evidence did not support a finding of exposure to Agent Orange or any other presumptive basis for respiratory disorders, thus denying the claim for this condition. The Board also found that there was no current diagnosis of sleep apnea.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back disability, Right inguinal hernia
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 3, 2017
- Citation
- 1710393
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 1710393.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and an increased rating for his acquired psychiatric disorder. The Board found that there was no evidence linking the current disabilities to military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected low back disability alone does not prevent him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability and bilateral hip disability, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased disability evaluation and effective dates are being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to address the severity of his low back disability, including whether he has experienced incapacitating episodes of IVDS.
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