Diabetes Board decisions

The Board found that the appellant's service-connected neurosis (conversion reaction) does not meet the criteria for special monthly compensation based on need for regular aid and attendance or housebound status due to his inability to care for himself, protect himself from hazards, and be housebound due to non-service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for GERD, an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for diabetes mellitus, and increased ratings for his bilateral hip and knee strains. The veteran's hypertension was assigned a 10% rating.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for hypertension, left hip disability, and diabetes mellitus. The decision found that there was no new and material evidence presented to reopen these claims, and that the veteran's conditions were not incurred or aggravated by active military service.

The veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus was denied as the evidence did not show that insulin or other treatments were required.

The Board denied service connection for flat feet with fallen arches, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. The decision found no causal relationship between these conditions and active service.

The Board finds that the veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus warrants a 20 percent rating, as it requires insulin and a restricted diet. The disability does not meet or approximate criteria for higher ratings.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to obtain missing service treatment records, private audiological examination reports, and VA treatment records. The veteran's claims for hearing loss, tinnitus, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension are currently under review.

The Board found that the veteran's death was not caused or contributed to by any service-connected disability, and denied the claim for service connection for the cause of death.

The veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus, hypertension, vision loss, peripheral neuropathy, and kidney disorder are remanded due to the need to determine if he was exposed to Agent Orange during his service in Vietnam.

The veteran's diabetes mellitus is currently rated at 20 percent, and his diabetic neuropathy of the right lower extremity is rated at 10 percent.,Both conditions are not shown to warrant higher ratings.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection for diabetes mellitus is without legal merit.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, finding that there was no evidence linking his current disability to his active service.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, finding that it was not incurred or aggravated by his period of service and could not be presumed due to herbicide exposure. The Board found no evidence of diabetes during service or within one year post-service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and diabetes mellitus, Type 2. The veteran's claims are based on presumed exposure to herbicides during his service in the Gulf War.

The veteran's claim for an effective date prior to October 8, 2004 for a separate 10 percent disability rating for service-connected peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity associated with type II diabetes mellitus was denied.,The veteran's claim for an effective date prior to October 8, 2004 for a separate 10 percent disability rating for service-connected peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity associated with type II diabetes mellitus was denied.

The veteran's death prevented the payment of accrued benefits due to his having no unpaid periodic monetary benefits at the time of his death.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an earlier effective date of a 30 percent rating for cataracts and service connection for venous insufficiency as secondary to diabetes mellitus. The evidence did not show that the veteran's cataracts worsened prior to November 23, 2004 or that his venous insufficiency was aggravated by his service-connected diabetes.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, peripheral neuropathy, arteriosclerotic heart disease, hypertension, and basal cell carcinoma. The appeals were based on direct service connection rather than herbicide exposure.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertension did not begin during service or become manifest to a compensable degree within one year of discharge, and there is no evidence showing it was caused by his service-connected diabetes mellitus. The claim for secondary service connection is denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II, warrants a 20 percent disability rating as it currently requires insulin and restricted diet without regulation of activities.