Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2020

The Veteran's claim for service connection for peripheral neuropathy was reopened and granted. The initial rating for ischemic heart disease (IHD) prior to March 26, 2020, remains denied. A TDIU is granted effective April 14, 2016.,Issues related to pancytopenia, kidney disorder, and IHD are remanded.

The Veteran's prostate cancer and coronary artery disease are granted service connection due to herbicide exposure at Fort Gordon.,Service connection for a respiratory disability is denied as the evidence does not indicate it was incurred in active service.

The Board denied service connection for ischemic heart disease and diabetes mellitus, type II as the Veteran was not exposed to herbicides during his active duty service in Guam.

The Board has granted service connection for a cardiac disability, which is secondary to the Veteran's service-connected left shoulder disability. The decision is based on medical opinions that link the current cardiac disabilities to the service-connected left shoulder disability.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete records and inadequate medical opinions. The issues include hypertension, low back disability including osteoporosis and degenerative disc disease (DDD), coronary artery disease, and sciatica of the bilateral lower extremities.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for Type II Diabetes Mellitus and Heart Disability due to insufficient evidence or conflicting opinions.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected arteriosclerotic heart disease, to include angina associated with posttraumatic stress syndrome, is being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.

The Board has granted service connection for ischemic heart disease and diabetes mellitus, type II (DM), both presumed to be associated with herbicide agent exposure during the Veteran's service in Thailand.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion to reconcile findings regarding coronary arteriosclerosis or arteriosclerotic heart disease with private treatment records.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus type 2, coronary artery disease, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction as a result of exposure to herbicides. The case will be returned for additional action to attempt to corroborate his potential in-service exposure to herbicides.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and review due to insufficient opinions regarding the onset of hypertension during service. The heart disorder claim is also inextricably intertwined with the hypertension claim.

The Board has granted service connection for heart disease and erectile dysfunction, both secondary to the Veteran's service-connected PTSD. However, it denied service connection for a right leg condition and lumbar spine condition.,For the right leg condition, the Board found no evidence linking the current disability to active service.

The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and the evidence does not support finding that his coronary artery disease, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes mellitus were related to his active service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have not rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, thus his TDIU claim is denied.

The Veteran's service connection claims for coronary artery disease and diabetes mellitus due to herbicide exposure in Korea are granted. The Board found that the Veteran was exposed to herbicides near the DMZ during his service.

The Board denied a total disability based on individual unemployability prior to March 30, 2007 and also denied an earlier effective date for the award of TDIU prior to that date. The decision is based on the Veteran's full-time employment during the appeal period.

The Board has reopened the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, bilateral upper extremities neuropathy, and left lower extremity neuropathy due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.,The Board has also reopened the claim for automobile and adaptive equipment or adaptive equipment only.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for ischemic heart disease, due to herbicide exposure, is denied as there is no current diagnosis of the condition.

The Veteran's claim for eligibility for specially adapted housing and financial assistance for automobile or other conveyance and adaptive equipment, or for adaptive equipment only is granted. The claim for a special home adaptation grant is dismissed due to the addition of new VA treatment records since the last SSOC was issued in April 2020.

The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there was no evidence linking the Veteran's death to a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated during service.