The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for avascular necrosis of the bilateral hips, finding that there is no link between his current condition and his active military service, including exposure to Agent Orange. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding that the hip disorder was caused by service.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions provided less likely than not that the avascular necrosis was related to Agent Orange exposure or service in general, citing specific risk factors such as tobacco use and alcohol abuse which were present during the Veteran's active duty. The private medical opinions lacked supporting rationale and references to scientific studies.
- Claimed conditions
- avascular necrosis
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 12, 2018
- Citation
- 1822481
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 1822481.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
Your right hip disability, diagnosed as avascular necrosis and degenerative arthritis, has been granted service connection in a separate Board decision. This appeal is dismissed because the issue of your right hip disability was already resolved.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for osteoarthritis and avascular necrosis, left hip, limitation of adduction is dismissed. From August 24, 2019, the Veteran's appeals for ratings of 10 percent for limitation of flexion and extension are granted.
- Partly granted
The Board denied earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, obstructive sleep apnea, prostate cancer, hypertension, bronchial asthma with chronic bronchitis, and CAD and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. However, an initial 10 percent disability rating was granted for hypertension.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew her appeals for higher ratings and earlier effective dates for avascular necrosis of the hips, migraine headaches, bronchitis, asthma, right hip scar, TDIU, and DEA benefits prior to May 29, 2020.
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