The Board denied service connection for a respiratory condition, to include COPD and asthma, as the probative medical evidence did not show that the Veteran has a current COPD disability or that his diagnosed asthma was incurred in or due to service.
The deciding factor: The April 2024 VA examiner found no evidence of COPD based on review of treatment records and PFTs performed on the day of the examination, and no treating private or VA medical provider has diagnosed the Veteran with COPD. The VA examiner also concluded that the Veteran's asthma was not caused by a TERA.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD, asthma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 21, 2025
- Citation
- A25036173
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a 70 percent disability rating for unspecified trauma and stressor-related disorder with major depressive disorder, recurrent, and alcohol use disorder in early remission, as well as TDIU due to asthma and SMC at the housebound rate.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including sinusitis, elbows condition, cervical condition, erectile dysfunction, kidney condition, sleep apnea, wrists condition, asthma, shoulders condition, ankles condition, eye condition (bilateral dry macular degeneration), peripheral vascular disease (heart condition), and rhinitis.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for COPD, finding that the evidence does not support a link between the Veteran's respiratory condition and his military service, including exposure to Agent Orange.
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