The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease, finding no evidence of herbicide exposure during service. The claims were reopened due to new material evidence regarding the Veteran's alleged second-hand exposure to herbicides in Japan.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not serve in Vietnam or Korea with units along the demilitarized zone, and there is no credible evidence of actual exposure to herbicides during his active duty service. The Board found that the appellant’s contentions regarding second-hand exposure were unsupported by competent medical evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 14, 2018
- Citation
- 18110544
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 18110544.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for coronary artery disease is being remanded due to the inadequacy of a previous VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection on the merits are being remanded due to new evidence and development needs. The maximum disability rating for tinnitus has already been assigned.
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