The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus type II due to herbicide exposure, but the heart disability claim is remanded as there is insufficient evidence to determine if it is related to service or herbicide exposure.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence showing a current diagnosis of ischemic heart disease, which is required for presumptive service connection on the basis of herbicide exposure. The Veteran's heart disabilities are not presumed due to herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus type II, aortic valve disorders, status-post aortic valve replacement, congestive heart failure, aortic stenosis, coronary artery disease
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 9, 2018
- Citation
- 18116826
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 18116826.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for coronary artery disease, hypertension, and stroke as there was no evidence of herbicide agent exposure during service and the medical opinions were against a nexus to service.
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