The Veteran's claims for type II diabetes mellitus, sleep apnea, hypertension (presumptive due to herbicide exposure), bilateral knee strain, acquired psychiatric disorder, erectile dysfunction, and lumbar strain are all denied. The Veteran's claim for residuals of a left shoulder injury is remanded.,Service connection for the Veteran’s acquired psychiatric disorder is also denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not support current diagnoses or a causal relationship between service and the claimed conditions in most cases, except for hypertension which may be related to herbicide exposure. The claims are being remanded as additional medical opinions are needed on some of the issues.,Service connection is denied because there is no current diagnosis of an acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Claimed conditions
- Type II Diabetes Mellitus, Sleep Apnea, Hypertension, Left Knee Strain, Right Knee Strain, Acquired Psychiatric Disorder (including PTSD, Anxiety, and/or Depression), Erectile Dysfunction, Lumbar Strain, Residuals of a Left Shoulder Injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19175249
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 19175249.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's erectile dysfunction is secondary to his service-connected major depressive disorder, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
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