COPD decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the case due to non-compliance with previous directives and needs a thorough medical opinion regarding the Veteran's need for aid and attendance or housebound status.

The Veteran's service-connected spot on the right lung due to asbestos exposure is not compensable, and his COPD and emphysema are unrelated. The TDIU rating prior to May 6, 2019, is remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for a respiratory disability, to include asthma and COPD. However, the heart disability claims are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for COPD is denied. The Board finds that the Veteran does not have any symptoms associated with COPD and there is no medical evidence of treatment or diagnosis related to COPD during the period on appeal.

Your service connection for respiratory condition, including sleep apnea, has been granted and you are now receiving a 100% disability rating effective September 28, 2020. The appeal is dismissed as the issue of service connection for respiratory condition has already been resolved.

The Board has granted service connection for COPD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms likely arose during his military service and resolving reasonable doubt in his favor.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and COPD are remanded due to the grant of service connection for restrictive lung disease, which now renders his TDIU claim moot.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to insufficient evidence and need further examination. The issues include visual disorder, heart disorder, throat disorder (including as a result of an undiagnosed illness), COPD, low back disability, and bilateral leg condition.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current gastrointestinal disability and therefore, service connection for this condition is denied. The cases of gastroesophageal disability (GERD), lower respiratory disability (COPD and asthma), carpal tunnel syndrome, sinus disability, and hypertension are all remanded due to insufficient medical opinions addressing potential service connection.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD, emphysema and asthma due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service. The Board found that there was no in-service asbestos exposure or other link between the Veteran's current lung conditions and his time in service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a respiratory disability, including COPD and emphysema. The evidence did not establish that his current respiratory issues had its onset in service or were related to service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD is remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding its etiology and whether it is related to his in-service herbicide agent exposure or secondary to his service-connected coronary artery disease.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a respiratory disorder, including COPD and Type II Chronic Respiratory Failure, and for total disability rating based on individual unemployment due to inadequate opinions regarding the etiology of his respiratory conditions. The Veteran was exposed to diesel fumes while burning human waste and asbestos while changing brake pads during service.

The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for OSA and COPD due to a lack of compliance with previous remand instructions. The VA examiner is required to provide an opinion on whether these conditions are related to service, including exposure to burn pits.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD, finding that it is not secondary to her service-connected asthma and is not otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.

The Board has granted service connection for a respiratory disability, including asthma and COPD, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's respiratory disability originated in service due to exposure to chlorine gas from an IED explosion.

The Board has ordered the case to be remanded due to an error in the medical opinion regarding the aggravation of nonservice-connected disabilities by service-connected PTSD. The examiner is requested to provide a new opinion addressing whether the Veteran's COPD and pneumonia underwent an incremental increase in disability, regardless of its permanence, due to his service-connected PTSD.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's emphysema and COPD are not related to his service, and thus denied these claims.,For the earlier effective date claim for sleep apnea, the Board finds there is insufficient evidence showing entitlement arose prior to June 13, 2012.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for COPD, finding that his current diagnosis of COPD is not related to his military service or secondary to his service-connected sleep apnea.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient rationale in a VA medical opinion and requests for additional records. The Veteran's cause of death is being reviewed, with particular attention to whether his service-connected PTSD aggravated injuries from a motor vehicle accident, which may have contributed to his COPD.