The Veteran's claim for service connection for a gastrointestinal disability, including as due to herbicide agent exposure, was denied. The Board found no evidence of an in-service disease or injury and insufficient medical opinion to establish a nexus between the conditions and military service.
The deciding factor: There is no competent evidence establishing a relationship between the Veteran's diagnosed gastrointestinal disabilities (GERD, celiac disease, gastritis, and irritable bowel syndrome) and his period of active service.
- Claimed conditions
- GERD, celiac disease, gastritis, irritable bowel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19190488
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 19190488.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including a head injury, headache disorder, erectile dysfunction, left earache disorder, chronic fatigue, right shoulder disorder, irritable bowel syndrome, right foot disorder, GERD, and left shoulder disorder, as the evidence did not support current diagnoses of these conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of February 13, 2024 for a 30 percent rating for irritable bowel syndrome.
- Granted
The Board granted a rating of 60 percent from January 27, 2016 to July 7, 2022 for the Veteran's duodenal ulcer, duodenitis, gastritis, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease but denied service connection for irritable bowel syndrome. The Board also denied an increased rating for the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric condition.
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