Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2009

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for scheduling a hearing before a Veterans Law Judge. The case will be returned to the Board after any indicated development or adjudication.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied, and the appeal is dismissed as the issues are not properly presented.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for rheumatic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, and a skin rash due to exposure to herbicides as there is no competent evidence of current diagnoses or a link between these conditions and his military service.

The Board found that the appellant did not have active or inactive duty for training, and thus is not considered a veteran. The heart disability claimed by the appellant was not incurred during service, including his period of inactive duty for training.

The Board found that the Veteran's heart disorder did not develop during service and is not related to his active duty. The claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed as the appellant withdrew it.

The Veteran's atherosclerotic heart disease is aggravated by his service-connected diabetes mellitus, and the Board finds that this meets the criteria for secondary service connection.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for heart disease and hypertension are being remanded due to the need for a new VA medical opinion considering recent NCPTSD articles and fact sheets.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination. The Veteran's claims of service connection for diabetes mellitus and heart disorder are being reviewed.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for coronary artery disease, attributing it to direct service connection rather than secondary to diabetes mellitus.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current heart disorders, including coronary artery disease and hypertension, are aggravated by his service-connected disabilities. As such, the claim for secondary service connection is granted.

The Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses at CMMC were denied as he refused transfer to a VA facility after being stabilized and could have been safely transferred.

The Veteran's death was not caused by the carelessness, negligence, or lack of proper skill on the part of VA medical providers during his hip surgery. The Board finds that no additional disability or death was proximately caused by VA.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for COPD, coronary artery disease with congestive heart failure, and diabetes mellitus were denied as there was no current diagnosis of these conditions at the time of his death. The claim for agnogenic myeloid metaplasia with myelofibrosis, claimed as bone cancer with anemia, was not addressed due to lack of a current diagnosis.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn for the issues of Parkinson's disease, diabetes, heart condition, arthritis, and sleep apnea.

The Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for a total evaluation of his service-connected hypertensive heart disease prior to June 17, 2005 has been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), was not caused or contributed to by any service-connected disability. The VA medical opinions provided were deemed more probative than the opinion from Dr. D.A.G.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional records from Fort Campbell Hospital in Kentucky. The appellant's claims for service connection for sinusitis and atherosclerotic heart disease with hypertension are pending.