Diabetes decisions — 2013

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining more complete service records and providing VA medical opinions.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from engaging in substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA examination reports and treatment records. The claims for increased ratings for hypertension and diabetic neuropathy of the upper extremities are also being remanded.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II is being remanded due to the need to locate his service treatment records and personnel records. The issue will be reconsidered after these records are obtained.

The Veteran died from septic shock, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and acute renal failure. The appellant claims that the death was caused by inadequate treatment of a glass injury to his foot at VA, leading to sepsis and other complications. The Board has ordered additional development to determine if these issues are related to VA care.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus and peripheral neuropathy have been rated based on their manifestations, but the appeal for higher ratings has been denied.

The Board found no evidence of a service-connected eye injury resulting in current vision impairment and denied the Veteran's claim for service connection.

The Veteran has withdrawn all issues on appeal, and the Board does not have jurisdiction to review them.

The Board denied an increased rating for diabetes mellitus and found no basis for a separate evaluation of erectile dysfunction. The hypertension and heart condition claims are remanded as the VA examiner's opinion did not address whether these conditions were caused or aggravated by diabetes.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, hypertension, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus are presumed to have been incurred as a result of service exposure to herbicide agents like Agent Orange. The Board finds that the Veteran has current diagnoses for these conditions.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus type II was not incurred or aggravated by service and may not be presumed to have been so incurred or aggravated due to herbicide exposure. The Board found that the Veteran did not serve in the Republic of Vietnam, thus precluding presumptive service connection.

The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected condition, and his claims for service connection were denied. The accrued benefits claims related to the Veteran's disabilities are also denied.

The Board found that the Veteran did not have diabetes mellitus or hypertension to a compensable degree within one year after discharge from service, and thus denied claims for these conditions. The stomach disorder with gastritis, IBS, h.pylori, and GERD was also not shown to be related to service or service-connected disabilities. Service connection for the right shoulder and left shoulder disorders were also denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and lumbar spinal stenosis with radiculopathy were denied. The Board found no evidence linking these conditions to his period of active duty.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death, diabetes mellitus and pancreatitis, were not service-connected. The appellant did not provide evidence to establish a direct connection between these conditions and his military service.

The Board has scheduled a videoconference hearing for the Veteran and is remanding the case back to the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office (RO) for further action.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for Type II diabetes mellitus and a chronic acquired psychiatric disorder (to include major depressive disorder, depressive disorder not otherwise specified, dysthymic disorder, and PTSD). The objective clinical evidence did not establish onset of these conditions during any period of active military service or a definitive link to specific events occurring during documented periods of ACDUTRA or INACDUTRA.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased rating of diabetes mellitus and service connection for psychiatric disorder and bilateral foot disability, finding that his diabetes was controlled by diet alone.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to the death of the appellant, and thus the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this claim.

The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II and left foot fungus as the evidence did not show exposure to herbicides during service or a link between these conditions and service.