The Board denied service connection for COPD, PTSD, heart condition, and stroke. Service connection was granted for unspecified trauma-related disorder.
The deciding factor: There is no competent medical evidence linking the Veteran's current disabilities to his military service, including herbicide exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD, unspecified trauma-related disorder, heart condition
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 14, 2018
- Citation
- 18158319
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 18158319.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart condition, including ischemic heart disease. The evidence did not support a finding of a current disability related to service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD, finding that there is no evidence of a nexus between his current respiratory disability and active duty service. The VA examiner concluded that the COPD was more likely due to tobacco use rather than asbestos exposure in service.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD was granted with an initial evaluation of 50 percent, effective September 24, 2007. The appeal regarding the heart condition and sleep disorder is denied. The Veteran's hearing loss prior to August 24, 2015, warrants a 20 percent rating.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, attributing it to his exposure to Agent Orange during service. COPD is considered a disease associated with such exposure.
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