The Veteran's claims for service connection for respiratory and central neurological disabilities were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of service connection due to lack of medical nexus opinions linking current conditions to military service.
The deciding factor: Medical records did not provide sufficient evidence to establish a link between the Veteran’s current diagnoses (Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis and Meniere's disease) and his military service, including exposure to chemicals or Agent Orange.
- Claimed conditions
- Interstitial Pulmonary Fibrosis, Meniere’s Disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2020
- Citation
- 20071476
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 20071476.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability, finding that the Veteran's current hearing loss did not begin during service and is not related to in-service noise exposure.,The Board also denied service connection for Meniere’s disease, noting conflicting statements about when the Veteran noticed her symptoms and finding her lay opinion on this issue unconvincing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether Meniere’s Disease is caused by or related to the Veteran's in-service motor vehicle accident and his service-connected cervical spine disability. The VA will seek an addendum medical opinion to consider the submitted medical literature.
- Denied
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated at zero percent (noncompensable) since June 2016. The Board found that separate ratings for hearing loss under Diagnostic Code 6100 and Meniere’s disease under Diagnostic Code 6205 are prohibited, as the note following Diagnostic Code 6205 prohibits combining an evaluation for hearing impairment with an evaluation under DC 6205.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected Meniere’s Disease is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination.
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