The Board denied the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his heart conditions were not related to his service or service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence linking the Veteran’s heart conditions and death to his service or service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, valvular heart disease status post aortic valve replacement, ascending aortic aneurysm repair, mitral valve repair
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 4, 2019
- Citation
- 19101171
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,429 · Granted: 29% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19101171.
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
The Veteran's appeals for service connection were dismissed as he withdrew his appeal.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's request for an extension of time to file a Board Appeal request was denied, and the attempted appeal is dismissed because the December 22, 2025, request was not timely filed.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for neuropathy, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, and gastrointestinal condition including colon polyps and diverticulitis as there is no persuasive evidence of a current disability or its onset during active duty.
- Granted
Service connection for diabetes mellitus Type II is granted. The Board also found that service connection should be granted for hypertension and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation as secondary to the Veteran's diabetes mellitus.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.