The Board granted service connection for dermatomyositis, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
The deciding factor: The May 2017 VA examiner provided a positive nexus opinion based on the rarity of the illness and the Veteran's lack of family history, while the November 2023 opinion did not provide sufficient evidence to support its conclusion.
- Claimed conditions
- dermatomyositis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- April 9, 2025
- Citation
- A25032748
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 134 · Granted: 38% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A25032748.
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 Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for dermatomyositis and diabetes mellitus due to insufficient evidence in the record. The case will be reviewed with a new examination that considers both the Veteran's service records and his exposure during military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for connective tissue disease and dermatomyositis due to insufficient evidence regarding the etiology of these conditions. The AOJ is instructed to obtain additional opinions from qualified clinicians to address whether the Veteran's conditions are related to her in-service exposure, including any potential synergistic effects of multiple exposures.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection of dermatomyositis, PTSD, anxiety disorder, and sleep apnea due to a full grant of benefits effective May 13, 2019.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for dermatomyositis, finding the evidence persuasive against it being incurred in or caused by service.
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