BVA decisions by condition
Thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis): BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2017 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) issue in 1,219 decisions. It granted the thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) issue in 12.9% of them, below the 19.4% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 25.5%, and remanded it in 60.0%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 33.5% were granted.
Decisions
1,219
2017–2026
Granted
12.9%
All conditions: 19.4%
Granted on the merits
33.5%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
60.0%
Denied: 25.5%
Thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) outcomes by year
| Year | Issues decided | Granted | Denied | Remanded | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 79 | 11.4% | 36.7% | 46.8% | 5.1% |
| 2018 | 114 | 7.0% | 30.7% | 57.9% | 4.4% |
| 2019 | 125 | 6.4% | 29.6% | 61.6% | 2.4% |
| 2020 | 123 | 5.7% | 26.0% | 65.0% | 3.3% |
| 2021 | 144 | 16.7% | 22.9% | 58.3% | 2.1% |
| 2022 | 127 | 17.3% | 18.9% | 63.0% | 0.8% |
| 2023 | 161 | 10.6% | 28.0% | 60.2% | 1.2% |
| 2024 | 161 | 13.7% | 16.8% | 67.1% | 2.5% |
| 2025 | 163 | 19.0% | 27.6% | 53.4% | 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 Other: dismissed, withdrawn or no clear outcome.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 thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) 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 | 180 | 75.7% | 21.1% | +54.6 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 110 | 71.1% | 26.3% | +44.8 pts |
| Treating physician opinion | 70 | 66.7% | 30.8% | +35.9 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 359 | 50.3% | 25.2% | +25.1 pts |
| Combat service | 57 | 36.4% | 33.4% | +3.0 pts |
| Claimed as secondary | 230 | 28.3% | 34.3% | −6.0 pts |
| Lay statement | 870 | 29.3% | 45.5% | −16.3 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 69.4% of the decisions that granted thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis).
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 22.3% of grants and 10.0% 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 thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) 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 | 747 | 32.6% | 35.7% | −3.1 pts |
| Negative nexus opinion | 566 | 31.2% | 36.3% | −5.1 pts |
Why the Board granted or denied thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis)
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established27
- Criteria for service connection met3
- Service connection established3
- Presumed herbicide exposure due to vietnam service2
- Continuous medication required for control2
- Onset in service established2
- Benefit-of-the-doubt rule applied2
- Favorable VA examination opinion2
Most common reasons in denials
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis41
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim34
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service30
- Service records negative or silent29
- No current diagnosis23
- Criteria for service connection not met7
- No continuity of symptomatology6
- Current diagnosis established6
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 thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) decisions
Granted
Related to in-service environmental toxin exposure; Southwest Asia theater of operations service
Conceded herbicide exposure during service; VA examiner linked hypothyroidism to herbicide exposure; Later negative opinion relied on inadequate TERA memorandum
Hyperthyroidism diagnosed in 2003; Bilateral dry eye syndrome noted by VA examiner; Rated by analogy to DC 6025 for bilateral lacrimal apparatus disorders; Resolving doubt in Veteran's favor
Denied
No competent evidence of in-service event, injury, or disease; No indication of association between disability and service; Earliest documentation of thyroid disability was years after service; Veteran lacks medical training to assert link to later diagnosis
Criteria for entitlement not met; Evidence persuasively weighs against service connection; No nexus to in-service immunizations
No current diagnosis of hyperthyroidism shown; No evidence of symptoms during or after service; No continuity of symptoms established
Rules that apply to thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) 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 thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) 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 thyroid enlargement toxic (graves' disease or thyrotoxicosis) 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.