Diabetes decisions — 2011

The Board found no evidence of diabetes mellitus, type II being incurred in service or due to exposure to herbicides. The Veteran's claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for lumbosacral DDD and DJD is granted, with a current disability rating of 20 percent. The claim for TDIU due to service-connected disabilities is also granted.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and a heart disability, all potentially related to exposure to Agent Orange during his military service. The Board has determined that additional development is needed to verify the Veteran's claimed herbicide exposure and obtain outstanding VA treatment records.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD was denied in 2003 and is not being reopened.,Service connection for diabetes mellitus, which manifested years after separation, cannot be granted as it is not related to active service or any incident thereof.

The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea, finding that it is at least as likely as not caused by the Veteran's service-connected diabetes.

The Veteran's tinnitus, hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, erectile dysfunction, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities were not shown to be related to service.,Service connection was denied for all claimed conditions.

The Board has granted service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, finding it was incurred in active wartime service due to exposure to Agent Orange. The Veteran's personnel records confirm his service in the area where herbicides were applied.

The Board found that the Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II, was not incurred in or aggravated by his military service and is not related to any service-connected disability.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining a comprehensive VA examination and reviewing recent treatment records.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial increased rating for his service-connected diabetes mellitus was dismissed due to the Veteran expressing his desire to withdraw from appellate review of this issue.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings are addressed in the REMAND portion of the decision below and are REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. The appeal is denied as there is no evidence showing that the Veteran had peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity prior to December 4, 2003.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a right fourth finger disorder, numbness of the left foot, and diabetes mellitus. The Board found that there was no current disability related to these conditions, with the exception of diabetes mellitus which is secondary to his service-connected hypertension.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to unclear information regarding his exposure to herbicides during service. The Board needs to determine if the USS Passumpsic-AO-107 was stationed in inland waterways of Vietnam (Brown Water Service) when the Veteran served aboard the ship between May 1972 and October 1972.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus was not incurred in service and is not presumed to have been incurred due to exposure to herbicides or ionizing radiation. The Board denied the claim for service connection.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for diabetes mellitus type II, which the Board has determined requires further development due to missing service personnel records and unavailability of in-country Vietnam service.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus is currently rated at 20 percent, the highest available rating under VA's rating criteria. The Board finds that his disability picture does not warrant a higher evaluation as there is no evidence of insulin and restricted diet with regulation of activities.

The Board found no evidence of herbicide exposure during service and denied the claims for diabetes mellitus, peripheral neuropathy, and heart disability as they are not presumed due to service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II is being remanded due to the need to verify his exposure to herbicides during active duty in Thailand.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his left knee disorders and service connection for diabetes mellitus have been granted. The effective date is not specified.

The Board found no evidence of a lung disability or diabetes mellitus in service and denied the Veteran's claims for these conditions. The Board also noted that there was no credible evidence of herbicide exposure during service, leading to denial of service connection for diabetes mellitus.