The Veteran's achalasia, previously characterized as gastroesophageal disease, is granted an initial rating of 30 percent.
The deciding factor: The symptoms of dysphagia, pyrosis, regurgitation, substernal and arm pain, inability to sleep flat due to reflux, and inability to vomit or burp were found to be productive of considerable impairment of health, warranting a 30% rating under Diagnostic Code 7346.
- Claimed conditions
- achalasia, gastroesophageal disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- August 31, 2020
- Citation
- 20057436
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 20057436.
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.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's achalasia did not begin during service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease, and therefore denied his claim for service connection.
- Denied
The Veteran's GERD with gastritis and achalasia is rated at 10 percent, but the Board finds that his symptoms do not warrant a higher rating due to lack of considerable impairment of health.
- Denied
The Board denied an earlier effective date for the award of service connection for GERD and a higher rating for achalasia type 3 to include spasm of esophagus (cardiospasm).
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for GERD, hiatal hernia, achalasia, and hiccough, finding that these conditions are at least as likely as not due to environmental exposures in Southwest Asia. The decision also found that the Veteran's medications used to treat his service-connected foot and back condition exacerbated his stomach condition.
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