The Board has determined that the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy and headache disability are not related to service, as they are considered a direct result of his own substance abuse.,Service connection for these conditions cannot be granted due to lack of evidence linking them to military service.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided by VA examiners indicate that the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy and headache disability are more likely related to his long-standing alcohol consumption and substance abuse, rather than any exposure during service in Southwest Asia.
- Claimed conditions
- Peripheral Neuropathy of the Right Upper Extremity, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Left Upper Extremity, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Right Lower Extremity, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Left Lower Extremity, Headache Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2017
- Citation
- 1757431
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 1757431.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's right shoulder disability, low back condition, bilateral knee disabilities, and left shoulder strain have been granted service connection. The Veteran's low back condition has been increased to a 40 percent evaluation, while the bilateral knee conditions remain at their current 10 percent evaluations.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment from March 29, 2012, to April 23, 2025. The Board granted a TDIU during this period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disability and a headache disability are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Granted
The Veteran is found to be eligible for enrollment in the PCAFC program due to his severe and complex medical conditions, which require personal care services.
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