The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for valvular heart disease because a pre-decisional duty to assist error occurred, specifically regarding an in-service exposure opinion.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's March 2021 opinion did not adequately consider a private medical opinion from September 2018 that suggested in-service exposures worsened the Veteran's preexisting heart condition.
- Claimed conditions
- valvular heart disease
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2024
- Citation
- A24069377
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a 100 percent rating for valvular heart disease based on MET testing showing that at a workload of 3 METs or less, the condition results in fatigue and breathlessness.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral cataracts, dry eye syndrome, allergic conjunctivitis, valvular heart disease, cardiomyopathy, and atrial fibrillation as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred in or caused by an in-service event.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeal for service connection for supraventricular arrhythmia, chronic paronychia, psoriasis and rosacea (claimed as skin condition), pulmonary nodules, and valvular heart disease.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of August 6, 2021 for service connection for heart disease based on the Veteran's exposure to chemicals in service.
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