Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2020

The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his ischemic heart disease is presumptively service-connected due to herbicide exposure during service in Thailand.

The Board denied service connection for ischemic heart disease, low back disorder, and left ankle disorder. The Veteran's claims were not based on a presumption of service connection due to exposure to Agent Orange or other specific conditions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for anemia, coronary artery disease, and tinnitus have been denied as the evidence does not support a finding that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to in-service cold weather exposure.,Service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the relationship between current hearing loss and in-service noise exposure.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral foot condition, right leg condition, and left leg condition have been remanded as there are no opinions on whether these conditions may be related to cold weather exposure during service.

The Veteran's initial rating for ischemic heart disease prior to February 18, 2016 was granted at a 60 percent. A 100 percent rating was granted beginning on February 18, 2016.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus type II, ischemic heart disease, hemorrhoids, asbestosis, and ANCA vasculitis (as secondary to service-connected asbestosis) on a presumptive basis due to exposure to herbicides during active service. Service connection is also granted for hemorrhoids based on direct service incurrence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for ischemic heart disease due to herbicide exposure, finding that there is no current diagnosis of IHD and no evidence of a link between his in-service exposure to Agent Orange and his current condition.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a failure to comply with VA's duty to assist in obtaining all relevant records, including those from the Veteran's Reserve service and Social Security Administration.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for a heart disorder, including atrial fibrillation, and prostate cancer are being remanded due to inadequate medical opinions regarding the relationship between his in-service exposure to chemical and hazardous waste and/or asbestos and his current conditions.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of death due to cardiorespiratory failure and cardiac rhythm disturbance, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to service or any presumptive exposure.

The Veteran's heart condition, including coronary spasm and Prinzmetal’s angina, was initially rated at 10 percent prior to March 7, 2019. After a remand for additional evidence, the rating was increased to 30 percent thereafter. The current level of disability does not warrant an increase beyond these ratings.

The Board has granted service connection for ischemic heart disease due to presumed exposure to herbicides during active service at the Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base in Thailand.

The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for a left knee disorder, increased rating for CAD prior to September 13, 2018 and greater than 60 percent thereafter, and TDIU due to service-connected disability prior to September 13, 2018. The Veteran's claims are remanded for additional development including obtaining medical records and scheduling VA examinations.

The Board has denied service connection for a gallbladder disability, ischemic heart disease, and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy. The claim of reopening an adjustment disorder with depressive mood is also remanded.

The Veteran's CABG is rated at 30% effective August 1, 2016. The claim for a one-time payment of 100% rating for July 2016 was denied as the benefit began on August 1, 2016.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for atrial fibrillation and valvular heart disease (previously denied as part of heart disease), bilateral hearing loss, diabetes mellitus type II, and erectile dysfunction have been dismissed. The claim for diabetes mellitus type II is remanded due to conflicting medical evidence regarding the current diagnosis. The claim for erectile dysfunction is also remanded as there is no clear opinion linking it to service-connected diabetes mellitus type II.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for a heart disorder, which was related to exposure to herbicide agents or secondary to an acquired psychiatric disorder, has been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's heart condition, which included coronary artery disease with a myocardial infarction, was rated at 100 percent effective January 19, 2019.

The Board dismissed the appeals as the Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal and thus has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's heart disorder, including myocardial infarction with cardiogenic shock, as secondary to his service-connected unspecified adjustment disorder.

The Veteran's representative withdrew all appeals, including those for service connection of coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension.