BVA decisions by condition
Dementia: BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2017 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a dementia issue in 1,374 decisions. It granted the dementia issue in 16.4% of them, below the 19.4% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 28.0%, and remanded it in 53.3%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 36.9% were granted.
Decisions
1,374
2017–2026
Granted
16.4%
All conditions: 19.4%
Granted on the merits
36.9%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
53.3%
Denied: 28.0%
Dementia outcomes by year
| Year | Issues decided | Granted | Denied | Remanded | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 115 | 9.6% | 30.4% | 51.3% | 8.7% |
| 2018 | 184 | 10.9% | 31.5% | 54.9% | 2.7% |
| 2019 | 219 | 9.1% | 31.1% | 56.2% | 3.7% |
| 2020 | 125 | 12.0% | 28.8% | 57.6% | 1.6% |
| 2021 | 149 | 12.1% | 30.2% | 55.7% | 2.0% |
| 2022 | 133 | 20.3% | 27.8% | 50.4% | 1.5% |
| 2023 | 154 | 16.2% | 27.9% | 55.2% | 0.6% |
| 2024 | 133 | 26.3% | 21.1% | 51.1% | 1.5% |
| 2025 | 110 | 31.8% | 20.9% | 47.3% | 0.0% |
| 2026 | 70 | 30.0% | 21.4% | 45.7% | 2.9% |
Each row counts issues (each condition the Board decided), so the shares add up to 100%. Other: dismissed, withdrawn or no clear outcome. Years with fewer than 50 issues are left out.
Evidence in granted and denied dementia decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the dementia issue on the merits when the decision mentioned it, compared with decisions that did not. These are associations, not causes, and evidence is recorded per decision, not per issue.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positive nexus opinion | 275 | 77.6% | 18.2% | +59.4 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 177 | 81.6% | 26.6% | +55.0 pts |
| Claimed as secondary | 537 | 63.9% | 21.7% | +42.2 pts |
| Treating physician opinion | 88 | 75.0% | 33.3% | +41.7 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 442 | 53.5% | 24.7% | +28.8 pts |
| Combat service | 105 | 47.2% | 35.9% | +11.3 pts |
| Buddy statement | 45 | 42.9% | 36.7% | +6.2 pts |
| Lay statement | 995 | 31.2% | 56.1% | −24.9 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 72.0% of the decisions that granted dementia.
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 17.8% of grants and 9.6% of denials.
Negative evidence in the record
An unfavorable exam or a negative nexus opinion often sits in the same record as favorable evidence, and the Board weighs them against each other. So these rows show how often dementia was still granted when the record contained the negative item, not that the item helped.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unfavorable VA exam | 864 | 33.8% | 43.9% | −10.0 pts |
| Negative nexus opinion | 645 | 32.1% | 42.5% | −10.4 pts |
Why the Board granted or denied dementia
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established33
- Caused by the service-connected disability21
- Service connection established9
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability6
- Favorable VA medical opinion2
- VA examiner opinions found inadequate2
- Criteria for service connection met2
- Resolved all doubt in favor of the veteran2
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim45
- No current diagnosis45
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis39
- Service records negative or silent32
- Current diagnosis established23
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service21
- No continuity of symptomatology8
- Evidence persuasively weighs against service connection7
Numbers are decisions that gave the reason. Reasons are short phrases extracted by AI from each decision; common wordings of the same reason are grouped. Benefit of the doubt is reported above.
Recent dementia decisions
Granted
Evidence is at least approximately evenly balanced regarding secondary nexus.; Reasonable doubt resolved in Veteran's favor.; Concurrence between VA neurologist and private physician with September 2017 VA psychologist opinion.
Aggravated by service-connected bilateral hearing loss; Supported by multiple VA and private medical opinions; Medical literature shows link between hearing loss and dementia risk
Current disability established (dementia prior to death); Service-connected diabetes and CAD established; Private examiner provided positive opinion linking dementia to diabetes and CAD; Evidence evenly balanced, doubt resolved in veteran's favor
Denied
No competent medical or lay evidence of nexus; Veteran not competent to determine etiology; Failure to attend VA exam thwarted development
Did not manifest during service; Not related to service; Criteria for service connection not met
No evidence of in-service injury or event related to dementia; Service records and TERA memorandum did not support in-service nexus; Benefit of the doubt doctrine inapplicable as evidence weighs against claim
Rules that apply to dementia claims
- 38 CFR 3.303
Principles of service connection
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.310
Secondary service connection and aggravation
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.102
Reasonable doubt (benefit of the doubt)
Read it in VA Law Explorer
Research your dementia case
Narrow by year, judge, evidence or secondary condition, read the decisions, and export a research memo.
How these numbers are calculated
- Rates count decisions in which the Board decided a dementia issue, by the outcome of that issue. Other issues in the same decision can have different outcomes.
- “Granted on the merits” leaves out remands and dismissals. “All conditions” is the grant share across every condition issue in the data.
- The data comes from CaseScribe's AI extraction of public BVA decisions (2017–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.