The Board granted service connection for ischemic heart disease and hypothyroidism based on the Veteran's presumed exposure to herbicide agents during his service in the DMZ of Korea.
The deciding factor: The evidence supports a finding that the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents, which are known to cause ischemic heart disease and hypothyroidism. The Board finds the favorable and unfavorable evidence is in relative balance as to whether the Veteran's current conditions were incurred in service.
- Claimed conditions
- ischemic heart disease, hypothyroidism
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- May 13, 2025
- Citation
- A25043032
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 a deviated septum and denied compensable ratings for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, hypothyroidism, and hypertension.
- Partly granted
The Board grants service connection for tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's tinnitus began during his period of active duty service. The claims for ischemic heart disease, aortic valve replacement, status post aortic stenosis, and peripheral vascular disease with popliteal aneurysm are remanded.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hypothyroidism, as it is presumptively linked to herbicide agent exposure during the Veteran's service in Vietnam.
- Denied
The Board denied an initial compensable disability rating for service-connected hypothyroidism and remanded the claim for service connection for lipomas (claimed as cysts surgery).
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