The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities substantially contributed to his death, and therefore grants service connection for cause of death.
The deciding factor: The private medical opinions supported by years of treatment experience found that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him inactive, which contributed to his difficulty healing and ultimately his death.
- Claimed conditions
- low back disability, migraine headaches, posttraumatic stress disorder, residuals of a right clavicle fracture, right knee disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, rhegulopathy of the bilateral lower extremities, residuals of a fracture of the right ankle, scars, chronic osteomyelitis of the right leg
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 2, 2026
- Citation
- A26009449
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 A26009449.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and hip disabilities.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
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