BVA decisions by condition
Hernia hiatal: BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2017 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a hernia hiatal issue in 1,225 decisions. It granted the hernia hiatal issue in 14.7% of them, below the 19.4% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 32.0%, and remanded it in 50.4%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 31.5% were granted.
Decisions
1,225
2017–2026
Granted
14.7%
All conditions: 19.4%
Granted on the merits
31.5%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
50.4%
Denied: 32.0%
Hernia hiatal outcomes by year
| Year | Issues decided | Granted | Denied | Remanded | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 108 | 9.3% | 37.0% | 45.4% | 8.3% |
| 2018 | 175 | 13.1% | 36.6% | 43.4% | 6.9% |
| 2019 | 148 | 11.5% | 31.1% | 50.7% | 6.8% |
| 2020 | 140 | 15.7% | 32.1% | 48.6% | 3.6% |
| 2021 | 148 | 12.8% | 35.1% | 49.3% | 2.7% |
| 2022 | 123 | 22.0% | 22.0% | 55.3% | 0.8% |
| 2023 | 120 | 12.5% | 30.0% | 55.8% | 1.7% |
| 2024 | 117 | 11.1% | 28.2% | 59.0% | 1.7% |
| 2025 | 118 | 18.6% | 35.6% | 43.2% | 2.5% |
| 2026 | 53 | 24.5% | 28.3% | 47.2% | 0.0% |
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 Other: dismissed, withdrawn or no clear outcome.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 hernia hiatal decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the hernia hiatal 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 | 157 | 60.9% | 26.2% | +34.7 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 139 | 56.7% | 26.3% | +30.4 pts |
| Treating physician opinion | 46 | 51.7% | 30.4% | +21.3 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 327 | 38.3% | 28.1% | +10.2 pts |
| Claimed as secondary | 188 | 34.9% | 31.0% | +3.9 pts |
| Lay statement | 951 | 31.1% | 33.3% | −2.3 pts |
| Combat service | 55 | 29.2% | 31.6% | −2.4 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 67.2% of the decisions that granted hernia hiatal.
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 36.7% of grants and 12.5% 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 hernia hiatal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative nexus opinion | 534 | 27.0% | 35.4% | −8.4 pts |
| Unfavorable VA exam | 837 | 29.4% | 38.0% | −8.5 pts |
Why the Board granted or denied hernia hiatal
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established17
- Criteria for service connection met4
- Symptoms productive of considerable impairment of health4
- Already at the maximum schedular rating3
- Considerable impairment of health3
- Caused by the service-connected disability3
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability3
- Symptoms met criteria for 30% rating3
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim40
- No current diagnosis31
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis28
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service27
- Service records negative or silent21
- Current diagnosis established13
- Symptoms did not meet criteria for higher rating8
- Criteria for increased rating not met5
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 hernia hiatal decisions
Granted
January 2024 VA examination provided positive nexus opinion.; Linked hiatal hernia to parachutist duties.; Opinion found to be well-reasoned and significant.; Service treatment records were silent regarding gastroesophageal symptoms.
Credible lay statements of in-service symptoms; Symptoms documented in service medical records; Subsequent diagnosis of hiatal hernia; VA opinions failed to adequately address in-service symptoms
Probative evidence in favor of finding; Symptoms began in service and continued; Established causal link (nexus)
Denied
Current diagnosis conceded; Service treatment records document gastroenteritis; VA examiner opined no chronicity of GERD post-service
No in-service complaints or treatment for hiatal hernia; No medical evidence linking hiatal hernia to service; Evidence persuasively weighs against the claim
No current hernia diagnosis; Veteran's lay statements insufficient; Evidence persuasively against claim
Rules that apply to hernia hiatal 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 hernia hiatal 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 hernia hiatal 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.