The Veteran's claims for service connection were granted, with the exception of a few issues. The Board found that the Veteran had current diagnoses and credible evidence supporting his reported stressors related to combat experience in Vietnam. Service connection was established for PTSD based on exposure to hostile military activity.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's trauma-related symptoms were directly caused by intense fear experienced during a hostile combat zone, meeting the DSM criteria for exposure to traumatic events.
- Claimed conditions
- Porphyria Cutanea Tarda, Acquired Psychiatric Disability (PTSD), Respiratory Disability (Bronchitis, Sinusitis, Chronic Cough, Asbestosis, COPD), Hypertension, Cardiac Disability, Headaches, Erectile Dysfunction (ED), Prostate Disability, Skin Disability of the Scalp, Periodontal Disease
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 18, 2017
- Citation
- 1746441
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 1746441.
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 claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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