Asthma decisions — 2007

The Board found that the veteran's current degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine was not incurred in or aggravated by service, and arthritis may not be presumed to have been so incurred. The claim for a pulmonary disability was remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Board found that the veteran's preexisting asthma was not aggravated by service, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The veteran's diabetes mellitus and PTSD are granted as service-connected due to exposure during his Vietnam-era service. The asthma claim is remanded for further examination.

The veteran's initial ratings for his left knee and bronchial asthma were granted, but he is still seeking higher ratings. The left knee was rated at 10 percent prior to September 15, 2005, and as of November 1, 2005. His pseudofolliculitis with keratosis pillaris remains at 10 percent, while his bronchial asthma is currently rated at 30 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for chronic bronchitis, asthma, and tinnitus. The evidence did not support a finding of in-service exposure to asbestos or other conditions that could be linked to these disabilities.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation.,The veteran's service-connected disabilities are not shown to preclude him from performing substantially gainful employment consistent with his educational and occupational background.

The veteran's initial claim for higher ratings for bronchial asthma was denied. The RO granted service connection and assigned a 10% rating prior to June 1998, and a 30% rating since June 1998.

The veteran seeks service connection for bronchial asthma. The RO denied the claim in January 2005, and the case is now remanded to allow the RO to determine if a timely Substantive Appeal was filed.

The Board has granted service connection for panic attacks secondary to the veteran's service-connected mitral valve prolapse. Service connection for pituitary tumor, PTSD, and asthma have been denied.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for service connection for asthma, finding no evidence of a nexus between his current diagnosis and his military service.

The Board denied the appellant's claim to reopen her previously denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that the new evidence did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.

The Board found no evidence of a current right foot disorder due to service and denied the claim. For the asthma claim, new and material evidence was not received since the last denial in December 1997, leading to its continued denial.

The veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need to obtain VA clinic records from Toledo, Ohio.

The Board has decided to remand the veteran's claims for asthma and sarcoidosis due to incomplete information about his treatment at a facility called St. Edwards, which needs to be obtained.

The Board has granted the reduction of the veteran's asthma rating from 30 percent to 10 percent, effective June 1, 2004. The right wrist injury issue remains denied.

The veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for his bronchial asthma was denied until February 18, 2005, when the VA granted a 60 percent evaluation effective from that date.

The veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected asthma is being remanded due to the need for a more contemporaneous VA examination and pulmonary function tests.

The Board has determined that the appellant does not have asthma that is related to her military service, and thus denied her claim for service connection.

The Board found that the veteran's claimed conditions, including right knee arthritis, left knee disability, pulmonary disability (bronchitis and asthma), bilateral hearing loss disability, tinnitus, and psychiatric disability other than PTSD, were not incurred or aggravated by service. The evidence did not establish a nexus between any of these conditions and service.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of service connection for asthma, finding that the only cognizable date was the date of receipt of his application to reopen his previously denied claim on June 28, 2001.