The Board denied service connection for a neck condition, to include cervical disc disease, as the evidence did not support that it began during active service or was related to an in-service injury. The claims for diabetes mellitus, type II, and heart condition, to include ischemic heart disease (IHD), were remanded for further development.

The deciding factor: The Board found the Veteran's lay statements of a fall in service to be not credible due to lack of contemporaneous medical evidence supporting such an injury. The VA examination also noted no evidence of trauma associated findings on imaging that would suggest evidence of a neck injury due to a fall in service from 30 years prior and his neck condition was more likely due to age-appropriate changes over time.

Claimed conditions

neck condition, to include cervical disc disease, diabetes mellitus, type II, heart condition, to include ischemic heart disease (IHD), obstructive sleep apnea

How they argued it

Direct service connection

Exposure basis

None

Rating assigned

None in this decision

Decision date

February 5, 2025

Citation

A25010439

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