Diabetes Board decisions

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, type II diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, and cardiovascular disorder due to herbicide exposure. The Veteran did not meet the criteria for these conditions based on his service records and medical evidence.

The Board denied service connection for visual field defect, right knee disability, diabetes mellitus, residuals of a stroke, and heart condition as the evidence did not support an in-service injury or disease that caused these conditions.

The Veteran's claim for a TDIU was received in January 2009. Prior to September 2009, his combined disability rating for diabetes and associated complications was 60 percent, effective April 11, 2008; in September 2009, service connection was granted for PTSD, raising his combined disability rating to 70 percent, also effective April 11, 2008. The Veteran's income fell just below the average poverty threshold for one person after adjustment for Social Security and Medicare taxes, while engaged in marginal employment in running his portable barbeque business.

The Veteran seeks service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, which he claims is due to Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. The case is being remanded to obtain the ship's deck logs for the USS Kitty Hawk to confirm whether the Veteran was exposed to Agent Orange while on shore.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for the issues of service connection for peripheral neuropathy left arm, cardiovascular heart condition with surgery, and diabetes mellitus prior to a decision being made.

The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected anxiety disorder with PTSD is denied.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed as the appellant withdrew their appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and status post frontal meningioma were denied as there is no credible evidence of in-service injury or exposure, nor any competent medical opinion linking the current conditions to service.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, erectile dysfunction, degenerative joint disease of the right knee, and depression. The Veteran is entitled to a rating in excess of 10 percent for his degenerative joint disease of the right knee and an initial rating of 50 percent or higher for his depression since June 30, 2011.

The Veteran's right hip disability is rated at 50 percent effective December 1, 2012. The Board finds that the evidence supports a finding of moderately severe residuals of weakness, pain or limitation of motion following his total hip replacement.

The Board is remanding the case to obtain additional medical records and for further development before readjudicating the claims.

The Veteran's medical expenses incurred at a private facility were not for treatment authorized by VA or for emergency treatment, and thus reimbursement is denied.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicides in Vietnam, and further research is needed.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, which requires insulin and a restricted diet with regulation of activities due to episodes of ketoacidosis or hypoglycemic reactions requiring one or two hospitalizations per year, is rated at 60 percent effective September 1, 2009.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death (brain herniation due to stroke) was not related to service or his service-connected disabilities, including diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the Veteran's exposure to herbicides in Thailand and whether his PTSD, depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, and other psychiatric conditions are related to service. The case will be remanded for these purposes.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated VA treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for an endocrine examination to determine the current severity of his diabetes mellitus type II and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy.

The Board has determined that the Veteran is presumed to have been exposed to herbicide agents while stationed at Royal Thai Air Force Bases in Thailand, which supports his claims for service connection for type II diabetes mellitus and prostate cancer.

The Veteran's erectile dysfunction is service-connected as secondary to his service-connected type II diabetes mellitus. The Veteran also has a TDIU effective June 1, 2009.