The Veteran's death was caused by lactic acidosis due to acute kidney injury with hyperkalemia, which is presumed to be related to service exposure to herbicides in the Republic of Vietnam. The AOJ needs to verify if the Veteran went ashore at Da Nang during his service on USS Lipan and request relevant personnel records.
The deciding factor: The cause of death was not definitively linked to service exposure due to lack of verification, necessitating further investigation.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, lactic acidosis due to acute kidney injury with hyperkalemia, diastolic heart failure, atrial fibrillation
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 15, 2018
- Citation
- 18142291
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 18142291.
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.
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The appeal regarding the Veteran's entitlement to an initial compensable evaluation for atrial fibrillation is remanded due to unclear evidence on whether continuous medication is required for its control.
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The Board remands the claims for service connection for hypertension and diabetes mellitus to obtain further medical opinions regarding their potential relationship to toxic exposures during active service.
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- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for hypertension, atherosclerosis, and diabetes mellitus; granted service connection for erectile dysfunction and skin cancer; and restored the 10 percent rating for hypertension.
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