Diabetes Board decisions

The Board has remanded both the service connection claims for degenerative arthritis of the spine and diabetes mellitus due to insufficient evidence in the VA medical opinions. The Veteran's back disability is suspected to have pre-existed service, but a new examination is needed to clarify this issue. For his diabetes claim, a VA examination is required to determine if it had its onset during service or is otherwise related to service.

The Veteran's claims for increased rating of GERD with hiatal hernia, service connection for diabetes mellitus, and hypertension have been remanded due to inadequate development.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased evaluations are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and medical opinions regarding his psychiatric condition, diabetes mellitus type II, bilateral eye disability, bilateral knee condition, hypertension, and bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities combined to prevent him from obtaining and maintaining gainful employment from December 24, 2014, to March 21, 2021. The Board granted a TDIU for this period.

Service connection is granted for hepatitis C. Service connection is denied for diabetes, migraine headaches, right knee disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, left knee disability, and right leg disability.,The Veteran's service treatment records do not show any diagnosis or treatment of the claimed conditions within one year after separation from service. The Board finds that these claims are not supported by competent evidence.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain additional medical opinions regarding the cause of death and service connection for various conditions.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to inadequate medical opinion regarding secondary aggravation of diabetes mellitus, type II by service-connected hypertension and/or obstructive sleep apnea.

The Board has remanded the TDIU claim due to concerns about the comprehensive assessment of the Veteran's service-connected conditions and their impact on his ability to work. Additional examinations are needed to evaluate these factors.

The Veteran's right elbow disability, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, stroke, peripheral neuropathy of the right upper extremity, and tinnitus are all granted as they meet the criteria for presumptive service connection based on exposure to herbicide agents during military service.,Presumptive service connection is established for these conditions due to the Veteran's reported exposure to herbicide agents while stationed at the Naval Construction Training Center in Gulfport, Mississippi.

The Veteran's right knee DJD is granted as it is at least as likely as not related to his in-service injury and subsequent surgery.,The Veteran's left knee DJD is granted based on aggravation of a pre-existing condition during service. ,Service connection for diabetes mellitus type II is denied due to lack of evidence linking the condition to service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right eye disorder due to inadequate VA medical opinions and failure to address specific evidence. The case is now pending with instructions for an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, diabetes, and peripheral neuropathy, render him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Board is unable to make a decision on the service connection claims for bilateral hand disability, bilateral shoulder disability, bilateral knee disability, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and headache disability as no VA examiner has provided an opinion regarding their onset during service or relation to service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus, finding that there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between his service-connected resection of the large intestine and his LADA (diabetes type I).

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for COPD, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, hepatitis C, and MRSA infection have been withdrawn. The appeal for service connection for PTSD has been reopened due to new evidence received more than one year after the April 2010 decision. Service connection is remanded for vertigo (balance problems), Meniere's syndrome, tremors, sleep apnea, and TDIU.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board denied service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, bilateral upper and lower extremity neuropathy due to lack of evidence of herbicide exposure during service. The Veteran's claims were remanded multiple times but the evidence did not establish herbicide exposure.

The Veteran's sleep apnea is granted as service-connected.,The Veteran's diabetes mellitus and low back disorder are denied as not service-connected.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection for neuropathy of the right lower extremity and an earlier effective date prior to October 23, 2008 for a rating of total disability due to individual unemployability based upon service-connected disorders require additional development. The case is being remanded to allow for further examination and opinion regarding the Veteran's claims.

The Veteran's diabetes is granted as presumptively related to herbicide agent exposure, and the claim is granted.