The Veteran's cause of death is not causally related to his service, and there is no evidence of exposure to herbicides. Service connection for the cause of death is denied on a direct basis.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence shows that the Veteran’s scleroderma and accompanying medical conditions causing his death were already in an advanced stage during his second period of active duty, which occurred after his first period of service ended. The VA examiner's opinion supports this conclusion by stating there is no evidence to support that his scleroderma was aggravated beyond its natural progression by his second period of active service.
- Claimed conditions
- scleroderma, pulmonary edema, pulmonary hypertension, acute renal failure, metabolic acidosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 24, 2020
- Citation
- 20049467
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 20049467.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have prevented him from securing and maintaining substantially gainful employment since June 30, 2018. The Board has granted a TDIU effective July 1, 2018.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus type II, are presumed to be related to his service in the Republic of Vietnam. The Board has granted service connection for these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of asthma, pulmonary edema, COPD, vascular disease, dementia, and gastroenteritis due to a lack of evidence regarding service connection.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed due to their death. The claims for special monthly compensation, scleroderma service connection, Raynaud's disease service connection, bilateral hearing loss rating, and PTSD rating are not currently before the Board.
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