Diabetes decisions — 2021

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and granted. The Board has also remanded the cases of diabetes mellitus and erectile dysfunction due to insufficient evidence regarding herbicide exposure.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for sleep apnea, heart disability, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension due to incomplete compliance with previous remand directives. Additional development is required including obtaining updated VA treatment records and a new addendum opinion from a VA clinician.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for type 2 diabetes mellitus and related peripheral neuropathy were dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus with left eye retinopathy, cataracts and erectile dysfunction were not rated higher than the assigned percentages. The Veteran was denied increased ratings for his service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's back disability, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy have been granted service connection. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have not been granted service connection.,Service connection for the Veteran's back disability is granted as it is etiologically related to his service. Service connection for left lower extremity and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy are also granted as they are caused by his back disability.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus was rated at 20% since the initial grant of service connection, but his peripheral neuropathy of the left and right lower extremities has been granted a 20% rating from January 11, 2018.,Prior to January 11, 2018, the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy was rated at 10%, while it is now rated at 20%.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, due to herbicide exposure in Thailand. Service connection was denied for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus as these conditions are not related to military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected conditions contributed to his death. The appellant seeks service connection for the cause of her husband's death, which was caused by multiple factors including obesity and hypertension.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, to include as secondary to herbicide exposure, is denied. The Board found no evidence of herbicide exposure and the Veteran was not shown to have a current disability related to his time in service.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection and separate ratings for his bilateral upper and lower extremity diabetic-related peripheral neuropathy was denied.,An earlier effective date of November 16, 2009, though no earlier, is granted for the award of service connection for left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy associated with diabetes mellitus.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to exposure to herbicide agents, including for coronary artery disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, erectile dysfunction secondary to those conditions, and tinnitus. The claims are being remanded for further development, including verification of the Veteran's alleged service in Vietnam and proximity to the base perimeter.

The Veteran's type II diabetes mellitus requires oral medication, daily insulin, and a restricted diet. Regulation of activities has not been demonstrated, so the claim for a higher rating is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD and diabetic sensory-motor peripheral neuropathy have prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation since June 30, 2013. The Board has granted the TDIU claim for this period.

The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, alone, were not of sufficient severity to render him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment prior to February 21, 2014.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to October 25, 2012, finding that his service-connected disabilities alone were not of sufficient severity to render him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and eye disorder are denied as there is no evidence of herbicide exposure during service or a link to the conditions.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for prostate cancer, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension were denied. The Board found that the residuals of prostate cancer did not warrant a higher rating than 40 percent, DM was rated at 20 percent as it required no insulin or regulation of activities, and HTN was not shown to be related to service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of in-service noise exposure or a connection to service.,A TDIU from November 23, 2015 is granted due to the Veteran's service-connected diabetic peripheral neuropathy preventing him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a heart disorder and diabetes mellitus due to herbicide exposure, as they did not explicitly assess the credibility of the Veteran's statements about in-service herbicide exposure. The AOJ is required to verify the claimed exposure.

The Board dismissed the veteran's claims for service connection due to his death during the appeal process.