The Board denied service connection for rhabdomyolysis and hyperkalemia related to it, as well as compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for both conditions due to the lack of evidence showing that VA treatment caused additional disability or was due to an event not reasonably foreseeable.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence supporting a direct service connection claim and determined that the Veteran's rhabdomyolysis with acute pigment nephropathy and hyperkalemia were not caused by VA treatment, including the prescribed statin medication. The risk of developing rhabdomyolysis from statins is very low, and other pre-existing conditions like renal failure and hyperglycemia confound the causal relationship.
- Claimed conditions
- rhabdomyolysis with acute pigment nephropathy, hyperkalemia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 31, 2020
- Citation
- 20081971
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for cause of death to obtain a new medical opinion due to errors in previous examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remanded the veteran's claims for service connection for several conditions, including diabetes mellitus type II, heart disability, kidney disease with acute renal failure, hyperkalemia, prostate cancer, and blood clot in the left arm. The decision was based on a need to obtain private treatment records.
- Partly granted
Service connection for hyperkalemia is denied. All other issues are remanded for further evaluation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's service connection for his cause of death, specifically whether he received a blood transfusion during service. The VA is instructed to obtain clinical records from Vietnam and provide an addendum opinion on the relationship between the Veteran's conditions and his service.
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