The Veteran is granted a compensable rating of 10 percent for scars from bilateral hernia repairs, but denied an initial compensable rating for his bilateral hernias.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not support the presence of recurrent hernias, but indicates that the Veteran's pain and discomfort are caused by post-surgical tissue change in the scar areas.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hernias
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- May 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19141169
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 940 · Granted: 21% (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 19141169.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral pes planus, carpal tunnel syndrome of the right upper extremity, carpal tunnel syndrome of the left upper extremity, and bilateral hernias due to outstanding service treatment records. The issue of special monthly compensation based on housebound status prior to January 20, 2021, is also remanded as it may be affected by these issues.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for bilateral pes planus, carpal tunnel syndrome of both upper extremities, and hernias due to incomplete STRs and lack of medical evidence on record.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection on all issues, including right shoulder disorder, low back disorder, residuals of a neck injury, and bilateral hernias.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran did not have service in Vietnam or along the DMZ of Korea, and thus could not be presumed to have been exposed to herbicides. The claims for service connection were denied as there was no evidence linking any claimed conditions to service.
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