The Veteran's death was caused by an infection from a surgery for his service-connected ischemic heart disease, which led to sepsis and eventual death. The Board granted service connection for cause of death.
The deciding factor: Service connection was established based on presumptive exposure to herbicide agents in Thailand during the Vietnam era, leading to ischemic heart disease, which contributed to the Veteran's death from an infection related to his surgery.
- Claimed conditions
- Ischemic heart disease, Aspiration pneumonia, Peripheral inserted catheter infection, Sternal wand infection
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 15, 2022
- Citation
- 22052536
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 22052536.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an initial rating of 30 percent prior to July 18, 2014, and a higher than 60 percent rating thereafter for ischemic heart disease is being remanded due to incomplete evidence. The examiner needs to provide more detailed information about the severity of his service-connected condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for an earlier effective date and increased rating for ischemic heart disease due to a failure by the AOJ to request SSA records, which were not available.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction, status post stent placement, as well as obstructive sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for ischemic heart disease as there was no evidence of herbicide exposure and the Veteran's condition is not related to his military service.
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