Diabetes decisions — 2024

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for type II diabetes, a heart disability, and hypertension due to an error in providing notice of the right to a hearing before the AOJ.

The Board has decided to remand the cases of hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2), and rheumatoid arthritis for further examination and opinion regarding their etiology.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for bilateral hearing loss is denied as his current disability level does not warrant a compensable rating.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for bilateral hearing loss is denied as the earliest available effective date is February 15, 2023.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and other acquired psychiatric disorders are denied as there is no persuasive evidence of a current diagnosis or causal relationship to his military service.

The Veteran's death was caused by acute combined drug toxicity (heroin and fentanyl), which is not service-connected due to the character of his discharge from active duty. The diabetes and neuropathy, while service-connected, did not cause or contribute substantially to his death.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus Type-2 and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder.

The Veteran's initial ratings for sciatic nerve left lower extremity, median nerve left upper extremity, and sciatic nerve right lower extremity diabetic neuropathy have been denied. The Veteran is granted a 20% rating for each condition.

The Veteran's service connection claims for diabetes, diabetic retinopathy, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction have been granted with effective dates of January 5, 2022. The Board found that the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents in Thailand during his service, which is presumed for these conditions under the PACT Act.

The Veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus and gastrointestinal disability were denied. The effective date of the increased rating for left hip replacement was granted as February 11, 2021, but not earlier. Other requests for earlier effective dates were also denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes and bilateral knee disabilities were denied because the claims were not filed on the proper forms, and thus they could not be readjudicated.

The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 60 percent for diabetic nephropathy was denied, and the effective date for service connection for diabetic nephropathy was also denied. The earliest possible effective date is February 8, 2017.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus type one, LADA (latent autoimmune diabetes in adults) is denied as the evidence does not show that regulation of activities was required to manage the condition.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss and right heel condition have been denied as there is no evidence of current disabilities. The Board finds that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection in these cases.,For his extra-skeletal osteosarcoma, diabetes mellitus type II, obstructive sleep apnea, and insomnia claims, the Board has determined that VA examinations are needed to determine if there is a relationship between the conditions and the Veteran's active duty service.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus was not incurred or aggravated by service, and the Board found no medical evidence linking it to active duty.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's hypertension may be related to his service-connected type II diabetes mellitus, but more information is needed to determine if the diabetes aggravated the hypertension.

The Board has remanded the claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder, erectile dysfunction, and heart disability due to a lack of VA examinations.

The Board has remanded the issues of ratings in excess of 20 percent for various diabetic and nerve conditions, as well as the issue of entitlement to a TDIU.

The Veteran's right pectoralis tear with right shoulder degenerative joint disease and rotator cuff strain is rated at the maximum schedular rating of 30 percent, as there is no evidence of ankylosis or other impairment.,The linear surgical scar in the right pectoral region measures 10 cm x 0.5 cm and does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under Diagnostic Code 7802 due to its small size and lack of pain or instability.,Diabetes mellitus Type II is rated at the minimum noncompensable rating, as it requires restricted diet and/or oral glycemic agent but no daily insulin injection or activity restriction.,Actinic keratosis with chloracne has not covered 20 to 40 percent of the entire body or exposed areas, nor required any systemic treatment.

The Veteran's initial claim for an increased rating for bilateral hearing loss was denied, and the Board is remanding his claims of service connection for right mandible fracture and left corneal abrasion.,Service connection for diabetes was also denied.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's hypertension is related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus. The VA will need to provide a medical opinion on these issues.

The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus type II as caused or aggravated by the Veteran's service-connected spine disability, through obesity as an intermediate step. The decision states that there is no persuasive medical evidence suggesting that the spine disability limited the Veteran's ability to exercise to such a degree that it caused him to become obese or worsened his obesity.