The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, finding no evidence to support a diagnosis or onset of the claimed conditions during active duty.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show that any of the claimed conditions had their onset in service or were otherwise related to service, including as due to environmental hazard exposures incurred in Southwest Asia during the Persian Gulf War.
- Claimed conditions
- Posttraumatic stress disorder, Headaches, Bilateral dry eyes, Allergic rhinitis, Chronic fatigue, Fibromyalgia, Shortness of breath, Neck (muscle aches/joint pains), Left shoulder (muscle aches/pains), Left knee (muscle aches/pains), Right shoulder (muscle aches/pains), Right knee (muscle aches/pain)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 5, 2025
- Citation
- A25049711
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for chronic headaches, CFS, dermatosis, bilateral RLS, a lumbar spine disability, and sleep apnea but denied a compensable evaluation for allergic rhinitis.
- Denied
The appeal for higher ratings and effective dates for various conditions was denied, with the exception of left and right lower extremity radiculopathy which were granted an earlier effective date.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, a low back disability, residuals of a right foot injury, sinusitis, shortness of breath, allergic rhinitis, and sleep apnea as there was no evidence to support a link between these conditions and the Veteran's military service.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 9, 2022, for the grant of service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder with generalized anxiety disorder, other specified depressive disorder, and alcohol use disorder.
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