The Board has granted service connection for a gastrointestinal disability, to include GERD and polyps of the stomach and duodenum, as secondary to medications used to treat his service-connected cervical spine disability and gastritis. The issue of an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for gastritis is remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board inferred a positive secondary service connection nexus from the VA examiner's opinions regarding NSAID use for the Veteran’s service-connected disabilities, which caused GERD.
- Claimed conditions
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), polyps of the stomach and duodenum
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 23, 2021
- Citation
- 21009903
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 21009903.
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 denied service connection for various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for sinusitis and remanded the Veteran's claims for chronic lower back pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, neck pain, and GERD.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left lower extremity radiculopathy and denied the claims for right knee disability, erectile dysfunction, GERD, sleep apnea, and hypertension. The decision is remanded for further action on these issues.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeals regarding service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and gastroesophageal reflux disease due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.
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