The Veteran's death was caused by a cardiac event due to metabolic acidosis, which the VA medical center did not foresee. The Board finds that this was not the result of negligence or fault on the part of the VA and grants DIC benefits.
The deciding factor: The rapid worsening of the Veteran's metabolic acidosis was consistent with sepsis caused by a blood infection, but it was not reasonably foreseeable for the VA staff to know he would die from a cardiac event resulting in his death.
- Claimed conditions
- metabolic acidosis, cardiac event
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 20, 2017
- Citation
- 1722776
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 1722776.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the cause of death and potential toxic exposure. The Veteran's cause of death is metabolic acidosis, acute renal failure, septic shock, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and squamous cell carcinoma of unknown origin. The VA will need to obtain additional service personnel records and provide a TERA opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the cause of death.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was attributed to fulminant hepatic failure, hepatic encephalopathy, metabolic acidosis, and cardiopulmonary failure. The Board found no evidence linking these conditions to his INACDUTRA service or any other period of active duty.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and the Board denied entitlement to service connection for the cause of his death.
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