The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for asthma, finding that there is no evidence linking his current asthma to exposures during service. The examiner opined that the Veteran’s asthma was less likely than not related to his service.
The deciding factor: The medical opinion provided by the July 2019 VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's asthma was less likely than not caused by exposure to brake dust and other fuels, as well as cleaning agents, during service. The examiner noted conflicting evidence regarding the cause of the Veteran’s asthma and found it difficult to establish a nexus without resorting to mere speculation.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2020
- Citation
- 20001781
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 asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted a 30 percent disability rating for asthma from August 23, 2021 to May 14, 2022.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a heart condition as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lymphedema and granted an initial 20% rating for a painful and unstable scar on the right mid-shin, effective April 14, 2022. Other claims were remanded.
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