Diabetes Board decisions

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension is secondary to his service-connected diabetes mellitus and grants this claim.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to verify his Vietnam service and exposure, including requests for liberty logs from the USS Princeton.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type 2 was not incurred in or aggravated by service and is denied.

The Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses incurred at Ocala Regional Medical Center on September 9, 2009, September 11, 2009, and September 15, 2009 are denied as they were not for emergency treatment.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to address the appellant's claims for service connection, including consideration of a secondary service connection theory via aggravation. The case will be remanded for further action.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for SMC based on need for aid and attendance/housebound, earlier effective date for SMC based on need for aid and attendance, increased ratings for peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities. The RO acknowledged the Veteran's report of needing help with dressing, bathing, and buttoning clothes.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including diabetes mellitus and orthopedic conditions, are found to be in equipoise with his ability to secure and follow substantially gainful employment. Therefore, the criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities have been met.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's erectile dysfunction is caused or aggravated by his service-connected diabetes mellitus, psychiatric disability, or medications prescribed for treatment.

The Veteran's service connected disabilities are rated at a combined 90 percent and render him unable to maintain substantially gainful employment, warranting a TDIU rating.

The Board has determined that the Veteran was exposed to Agent Orange during his service on Johnston Island and that he currently has a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus type II. As such, the claim for service connection is granted.

The Veteran's total combined rating for service-connected disabilities is 90 percent, rendering him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and Meniere's disease (claimed as vertigo/loss of balance). The Veteran's other claims, including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, an acquired psychiatric disorder, a back disorder, and residuals of a ruptured appendix, are pending further development or remand.

The Veteran's claim for specially adapted housing or a special home adaptation grant is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and consideration of revised VA regulations.

The Veteran's cause of death was due to malignant neoplasm of the liver, with contributory causes of hypertension and diabetes. The Board found that none of these conditions were service-connected or related to herbicide exposure during service.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type 2 was dismissed due to his death during the pendency of the appeal.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus is being remanded due to insufficient information provided by the RO regarding his alleged exposure to herbicides while stationed at U-Tapao Air Base in Thailand. The VA will request verification from JSRRC.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, pilonidal cyst, and low back disability were granted. The conditions are considered direct service connections as there is no evidence of herbicide exposure or a presumption.

The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus and skin cancer, finding no in-service event, injury or diagnosis. The Veteran's first diagnoses of glucose intolerance and diabetes mellitus were not during military service.

The Veteran is rated as 100 percent disabling for cerebral-vascular accident with partial right sided hemiparesis associated with Type II diabetes mellitus from September 30, 2002. He does not meet the schedular criteria for SMC based on housebound status prior to that date.,The Veteran is entitled to specially adapted housing due to his service-connected disabilities resulting in loss of use of lower extremities such as to preclude locomotion without assistive devices.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates were denied. The Board found that the criteria for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus with erectile dysfunction, or a separate compensable rating for erectile dysfunction, were not met.