The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a lumbar spine disability and a heart condition, finding no evidence of a relationship between these conditions and his active duty service.,For the compensable rating claim for bilateral hearing loss, the Board found that the Veteran's current hearing acuity did not warrant such a rating based on the results from the most recent VA examination.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions provided by VA examiners indicated that there was no evidence of a relationship between the Veteran’s lumbar spine disability and his active duty service, nor could it be linked to his service-connected bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy.,Regarding the heart condition claim, the VA examiner opined that the Veteran's current heart condition was less likely related to his service-connected bilateral leg disability. The examiner noted that the cold injury of the feet did not cause a cardiac condition and that the two conditions were unrelated.
- Claimed conditions
- lumbar spine disability, heart condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- May 13, 2021
- Citation
- 21029428
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 21029428.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart condition, including ischemic heart disease. The evidence did not support a finding of a current disability related to service.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD was granted with an initial evaluation of 50 percent, effective September 24, 2007. The appeal regarding the heart condition and sleep disorder is denied. The Veteran's hearing loss prior to August 24, 2015, warrants a 20 percent rating.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for miscarriage, cervical spine disability, lumbar spine disability, and right elbow disability due to insufficient examination opinions and incomplete service history verification.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for service connection for left knee disability, right knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as these issues have been addressed in a separate docket.
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