The Board granted service connection for GERD as secondary to the Veteran's PTSD and tinnitus, but denied service connection for a lumbar spine disability, right ear hearing loss, chronic sinus condition, bilateral hand condition, jaw condition, aortic regurgitation, discoid lupus, residuals of peptic ulcer, left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition, cervical spine disability, left upper extremity (LUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability, and right upper extremity (RUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability.
The deciding factor: The Board granted service connection for GERD as secondary to the Veteran's PTSD and tinnitus based on a private medical opinion that found a causal relationship between the Veteran's mental health conditions and his GERD. The evidence of record did not support the claims for other disabilities, including those related to the lumbar spine, right ear hearing loss, and various musculoskeletal issues.
- Claimed conditions
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), lumbar spine disability, right ear hearing loss, chronic sinus condition, bilateral hand condition, jaw condition, aortic regurgitation, discoid lupus, residuals of peptic ulcer, left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition, cervical spine disability, left upper extremity (LUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability, right upper extremity (RUE) radiculopathy secondary to cervical spine disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- December 10, 2025
- Citation
- A25106364
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,062 · Granted: 34% (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 A25106364.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable disability rating for onychomycosis was denied as the condition did not require treatment and covered less than 5% of his body. The Board also remanded issues regarding service connection for left ear hearing loss and entitlement to a compensable disability rating for right ear hearing loss.
- Denied
The Board denied the claims of service connection for cervical spine and skin rash disabilities, finding that there is no evidence linking these conditions to active military service.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection of right ear hearing loss, and the case is dismissed.
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