Citation Nr: 18148456 Decision Date: 11/07/18 Archive Date: 11/07/18 DOCKET NO. 16-12 696 DATE: November 7, 2018 ORDER Service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s GERD had its onset in service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for GERD are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Marine Corps from June 1972 to June 2002, including service in Southwest Asia. His decorations include the Combat Action Ribbon. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a November 2015 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In October 2018, the Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. The Veteran asserts that he is entitled to service connection for GERD, as he was diagnosed with that condition while on active duty. Service connection may be granted for a disability resulting from a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active service. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. Service connection generally requires evidence showing (1) a present disability; (2) an in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service. Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1166-7 (Fed. Cir. 2004). The Veteran’s service treatment records (STRs) show that he was diagnosed with and treated for GERD in service. There are handwritten clinical notes from 1997 indicating “intermittent GERD,” and an undated “Adult Preventive and Chronic Care Flowsheet” (DD Form 2766, March 1998 Revision) lists “GERD” under the heading “Chronic Illnesses” and indicates that the Veteran was prescribed Prilosec 20mg q.d. See STRs. There are additional notes that the Veteran was treated for GERD through 2001. Id. Moreover, the Veteran’s retirement examination lists GERD, along with other conditions that the examiner noted as present, while the Veteran’s enlistment examination is silent for gastroesophageal complaints. Cf. Enlistment Examination Report; Retirement Examination Report. The Veteran presented for a VA examination in October 2015, during which the examiner diagnosed him with GERD. The examiner noted the Veteran’s report that his condition first began in 1998, and that he was diagnosed in-service at Camp Pendleton. The examiner opined that the Veteran’s GERD was less likely than not incurred in or caused by the Veteran’s service, as there were no medical records found that showed evidence of reflux symptoms around 2002, and that GERD symptoms are usually related to dietary changes. The examiner did not discuss or acknowledge the Veteran’s STRs indicating chronic GERD treatment, nor did he discuss or acknowledge the Veteran’s retirement examination indicating GERD at that time. See October 2015 VA Examination and Medical Opinion. The Board finds that the VA examiner’s opinion is not entitled to any probative weight. The examiner’s rationale is vague and does not address the critical evidence of record, namely the Veteran’s report of his symptoms and his medical records showing in-service treatment. As a result, the Board cannot be sure that the examiner was even aware of the Veteran’s in-service GERD treatment, including his prescribed medication. Indeed, while the examiner specifically notes that he reviewed the report of a 1977 medical examination of the Veteran, he makes no mention of having reviewed the far more probative 2002 retirement examination. Furthermore, he does not explain why an examination conducted five years after the Veteran’s enlistment and twenty years before the Veteran’s reported onset of GERD was noteworthy. Thus, the only probative evidence of record is in favor of the claim. In this regard, the Board emphasizes that there is competent and credible medical evidence of an in-service GERD diagnosis, and there is no evidence that the Veteran’s present disease is an independent manifestation. As all the probative evidence is in favor of the claim, the Board finds that the Veteran’s current GERD had its onset in service, and that the criteria for service connection for that condition are met. S. BUSH Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD D.M. Badaczewski, Associate Counsel