The Veteran's claims for service connection for a heart condition, right upper extremity weakness secondary to stroke, left upper extremity weakness secondary to stroke, right lower extremity weakness secondary to stroke, left lower extremity weakness secondary to stroke, difficulty swallowing (right cranial nerve), difficulty swallowing (left cranial nerve), and bowel dysfunction have been denied.,The effective dates for the establishment of service connection for these conditions are fixed at October 17, 2023.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims were received on October 17, 2023. The earliest possible effective date is therefore October 17, 2023.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart Condition, Right Upper Extremity Weakness secondary to Stroke, Left Upper Extremity Weakness secondary to Stroke, Right Lower Extremity Weakness secondary to Stroke, Left Lower Extremity Weakness secondary to Stroke, Difficulty Swallowing, right cranial nerve, Difficulty Swallowing, left cranial nerve, Bowel Dysfunction
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 21, 2026
- Citation
- A26005594
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 A26005594.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions due to a lack of VA examinations and consideration of all relevant evidence, including his National Guard service.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is rated at 100 percent effective April 30, 2024. The Veteran's hypertension does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating. Service connection for a heart condition and TDIU are remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of bilateral hearing loss, and thus service connection for this condition is denied. The issues of entitlement to service connection for hypertension and heart condition are remanded due to insufficient evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for an adequate medical opinion regarding whether the Veteran's heart condition is caused or aggravated by his service-connected OSA and PTSD.
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