Diabetes decisions — 2019

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, coronary artery disease, diabetes, and peripheral neuropathy, render him unemployable due to their severity.

The Veteran's death was attributed to respiratory failure due to COPD, congestive heart disease, and peripheral vascular disease. The Board has remanded the case for an addendum opinion regarding whether his coronary artery disease and diabetes mellitus type II contributed to his cause of death.

The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus type 2 and diabetic neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities as there was no evidence of herbicide exposure during service, and the conditions were not related to service.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has not been received to support the claims of service connection for difficulty swallowing and difficulty breathing. The Veteran's other claims have been remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to tend to the basic functions of self-care without regular assistance from another person, or vulnerable to the hazards and dangers incident to his environment. The Veteran is not entitled to SMC based on his service-connected disability ratings.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, finding that it is proximately caused by the Veteran's service-connected sleep apnea.

The Veteran's hearing loss and diabetes mellitus claims are remanded for further evaluation. The hearing loss claim requires a new VA examination, while the diabetes mellitus claim requires an opinion regarding potential service connection based on in-service exposure.

The Board has remanded multiple service connection claims for further development and examination, including those related to respiratory, prostate, kidney, psychiatric, TBI, foot, skin, headache, diabetes mellitus, and peripheral neuropathy disabilities. The Veteran is also asked to provide more information regarding his claimed stressors for PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for financial assistance for an automobile and adaptive equipment, or adaptive equipment only.

The Veteran's cause of death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and the Board denied entitlement to DIC based on service connection for his cause of death.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and granted. The Board has also determined that the Veteran is entitled to service connection for diabetes mellitus type II, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities, and chronic renal disease as secondary to diabetes mellitus type II due to herbicide exposure in Thailand. However, his claims for a bilateral eye condition and hypertension remain pending and need further examination.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, and Parkinson's disease due to herbicide exposure. The evidence did not support a finding of herbicide exposure during service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including coronary artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, diabetes mellitus, and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, preclude him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work experience. The Board has granted the Veteran's TDIU claim.

The Veteran's prostate cancer and type II diabetes mellitus are granted as service-connected due to presumed exposure to herbicide agents during his active duty in Thailand.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and residuals of in-service exposure to asbestos have been denied. The claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus was not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence, while the claim for residuals of in-service exposure to asbestos was denied as there is no indication that a current disability resulted from such exposure.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to insufficient evidence and need for updated examinations.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 40 percent for the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II due to lack of evidence meeting the criteria for a higher rating.

The Veteran's service-connected CAD was reduced from 60% to 30%, and his benefits were restored effective July 1, 2015. Service connection for hypertension, lumbar strain, right lower extremity radiculopathy, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and diabetes mellitus (type II) have been granted with effective dates of October 28, 2010.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to obtain or maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for gout, initial evaluation in excess of 70 percent prior to April 20, 2016 and since June 21, 2016 for PTSD disability, and service connection for diabetes mellitus as secondary to PTSD disability have been denied. The claim for service connection for testicular hypofunction has been remanded.