Diabetes Board decisions

The Board has dismissed all service connection claims and rating appeals due to the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, alcohol abuse, type II diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease, rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation prior to October 30, 2012. The Board granted the TDIU for this period.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for TDIU due to service-connected disabilities, finding that there was no evidence showing he could not secure and follow substantially gainful employment prior to February 11, 2004.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including diabetes mellitus and prostate cancer, caused his death. The Board has determined that the Veteran was in need of regular aid and attendance due to these conditions.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to herbicide agent exposure or other contaminants, including for diabetes mellitus, type II; hypothyroidism; hypertension; lumbar spine disorder; diabetic retinopathy; peripheral neuropathy; glaucoma; and residuals of a myocardial infarction.

The Board denied an earlier effective date for the grant of a total disability rating based on unemployability (TDIU) as there is no evidence that the Veteran filed a formal or informal claim for TDIU benefits prior to September 17, 2012.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to obtain VA treatment records and for an addendum medical opinion regarding his sleep apnea. The TDIU claim will be considered again as part of the increased PTSD rating claim.

The Board denied service connection for a bilateral foot neuropathy disability, finding that the Veteran's current condition is not related to his military service and did not manifest during or within one year of discharge.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful employment prior to October 18, 2019. The Board denied the TDIU claim on an extraschedular basis.

The Board has remanded the case due to an error in not providing a VA examination for assessing the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus, which impacts his ability to work.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus has been dismissed because the Veteran died before a decision could be made.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his service-connected conditions did not render him incapable of securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has granted service connection for a scar on the left elbow. The remaining issues of service connection are remanded due to lack of evidence regarding in-service exposure and other procedural matters.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II is denied. The Board has also remanded the issues regarding a higher rating for diabetes mellitus and service connection for glaucoma as secondary to diabetes mellitus.

The Board has granted service connection and secondary service connection for various conditions, including type II diabetes mellitus, kidney disease, coronary artery disease, diabetic retinopathy, depressive and anxiety disorders with insomnia, chronic anemia, and GERD. The effective dates are not specified as the appeal is based on reopening of previously denied claims.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II and abdominal cancer due to herbicide exposure (including TCDD dioxin) as insufficient development was done. The Veteran served at Anderson Air Force Base in Guam where he claimed exposure to herbicides.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and obstructive sleep apnea, finding that there was no evidence of a direct or secondary relationship to his service-connected thyroidectomy.

The Veteran's hypertension, psychiatric disability (anxiety disorder and depressive disorder), hyperlipidemia or dyslipidemia (high cholesterol), diabetes mellitus, heart disability, and heat exhaustion residuals were not shown to have originated during active service.,Service connection for these conditions was denied as the evidence did not establish a relationship between the disabilities and active service.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral diabetic retinopathy and chronic bullous pemphigoid diabeticorum on a secondary basis to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II. Service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities is denied as there is no current diagnosis.

The Veteran's type II diabetes mellitus is granted service connection due to herbicide agent exposure. Service connection for benign prostate hypertrophy is remanded as there is no direct evidence of its relation to in-service prostatitis.