Diabetes decisions — 2019

The Veteran's death was caused by cardiomyopathy, diabetes, and hypertension. The Board found that the Veteran had active service in the Republic of Vietnam and established a causal nexus between his active service and his death due to diabetes. Service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death is granted.

The Board has remanded the claim for hypertension as secondary to diabetes mellitus or diabetic nephropathy due to incomplete development of evidence and need for a new VA opinion.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for OSA and DMII due to insufficient medical opinions addressing lay reports of the Veteran's symptoms while on military leave.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate addendum opinion regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected hypertension aggravated his diabetes beyond its natural progression.

The Board has stayed the adjudication of claims related to herbicide agent exposure in or near the Korean Demilitarized Zone. The petition to reopen service connection for a spine condition is reopened, but the merits of the claim are remanded due to the need for a VA examination.

The Veteran's service connection claims for coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus type II, and a bladder condition have been remanded due to the need for additional evidence and examinations.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, soft tissue sarcoma, IHD, and prostate cancer are granted due to herbicide agent exposure.,Service connection is granted for type II diabetes mellitus. The Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents during his military service in Thailand and has a current diagnosis of the disease.,The Veteran's claims for soft tissue sarcoma, IHD, and prostate cancer are also granted as they fall under the presumptive service connection criteria due to herbicide exposure.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, kidney condition, diabetic retinopathy, thyroid cancer, esophageal cancer, and lung cancer are all granted. The claim for service connection for Charcot foot is remanded.

The Board has remanded the cases for additional examinations and opinions to address the Veteran's claims of service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, low back pain, and a rating in excess of 10 percent for headaches.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for the following conditions: bilateral foot disability, acquired psychiatric disorder (PTSD), back disability, bilateral hearing loss disability, diabetes mellitus, and bilateral eye disability. As a result, these issues are dismissed.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for prostate cancer was dismissed. The Board remanded the claims for service connection for diabetes, kidney dysfunction, and below-the-knee left leg amputation due to in-service exposure to PCBs.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient medical opinions and lack of evidence regarding exposure to herbicides, chemicals, or radiation during service.

The Board has remanded the claims for diabetes mellitus and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy due to Agent Orange exposure, as VA failed to verify the Veteran's in-service exposure at Fort McClellan.

The Veteran's type II diabetes mellitus, diabetic nephropathy, and diabetic retinopathy are all rated at 20 percent. The Veteran's diabetic neuropathy of the left and right lower extremities are also rated at 20 percent.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unemployable from April 4, 2010 to June 20, 2016. Effective date for TDIU grant is granted.

The Veteran's service connection claims for skin cancer, residuals of right breast cancer, scar of the right breast, diabetes mellitus, diabetic nephropathy with hypertension, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities were denied. The Board found that there was no evidence to support a finding that these conditions began in service or are otherwise related to service.

The Veteran's type II diabetes mellitus was not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology is not established; and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.,The preponderance of the evidence of record is against finding that the Veteran has had neuropathy of the left upper extremity at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim.,The preponderance of the evidence of record is against finding that the Veteran has had neuropathy of the right upper extremity at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim.,The preponderance of the evidence of record is against finding that the Veteran has had neuropathy of the left lower extremity at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim.,The preponderance of the evidence of record is against finding that the Veteran has had neuropathy of the right lower extremity at any time during or approximate to the pendency of the claim.,The preponderance of the evidence is against finding that a low back disability began during active service, or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.,The preponderance of the evidence is against finding that a bilateral eye disability began during active service, or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.,The preponderance of the evidence is against finding that Crohn’s Disease began during active service, or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.,Entitlement to service connection for a stroke is remanded.,Entitlement to service connection for hypertension is remanded.,Entitlement to service connection for a heart disability with a heart attack is remanded.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II is granted as presumed due to herbicide exposure. The peripheral artery disease claim is remanded for further review.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for erectile dysfunction, heart disability and diabetes mellitus was received on July 11, 2008. The effective date of the award of SMC for loss of use of a creative organ is set at July 11, 2008.

The Veteran meets the schedular criteria for a TDIU rating due to his service-connected disabilities, and is unable to maintain substantially gainful employment.