The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disability, finding that his ASD and its residuals are congenital defects not subject to superimposed disease or injury related to service. The Board also found no current disability other than ASD and its residuals.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of evidence reflects that the Veteran’s ASD is a congenital defect and was not subject to a superimposed disease or injury, thus preventing service connection for any resultant disabilities such as atrial fibrillation, sinus bradycardia, and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH).
- Claimed conditions
- Atrial septal defect (ASD), Sinus bradycardia, Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 24, 2019
- Citation
- 19105325
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, a renal disability, left ventricular hypertrophy, and right lower extremity paralysis, as well as an earlier effective date of March 15, 2018. Special monthly compensation at the aid and attendance rate was also granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for sinus bradycardia to obtain an addendum medical opinion addressing direct service connection and secondary service connection.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for heart, left knee scar, hearing loss, right finger, granuloma, and lipoma disabilities due to the Veteran's withdrawal.
- Denied
The veteran's claims for service connection for sinus bradycardia and hypertension were denied, as there was no evidence of current disabilities. The initial ratings for sinusitis, recurrent headaches, chronic strain of the lumbosacral spine, status post right knee menisectomy, and degenerative joint disease of the right knee were also denied.
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