The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, heart disease, erectile dysfunction, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities due to presumed exposure to herbicides during active duty in Thailand.
The deciding factor: The Veteran served in Thailand during the Vietnam War era and had presumptive exposure to herbicide agents. His current conditions are associated with these exposures and meet the criteria for service connection under 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e).
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, heart disease, erectile dysfunction (ED), right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 5, 2023
- Citation
- 23026259
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 23026259.
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 diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection on the merits are being remanded due to new evidence and development needs. The maximum disability rating for tinnitus has already been assigned.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, ischemic heart disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease, left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, and hypertension as the evidence did not establish an in-service event or exposure to herbicide agents.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and kidney disease are being remanded due to the need for VA examinations to determine if these conditions are related to his exposure to contaminants in the water supply at Camp Lejeune during service.
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