Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2022

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to herbicide exposure, as they are unclear whether the Veteran was exposed to qualifying chemicals during his confirmed service in Guam from March 1965 to August 1966.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence of a diagnosis of heart disease prior to August 18, 2014. The Veteran's service-connected heart disease is presumed due to herbicide agent exposure.

The Board has remanded four issues for additional development, including VA examinations to address the current nature and severity of service-connected prostate cancer with associated residuals, coronary artery bypass, left knee disability, and acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran's claims are pending.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss is dismissed. Service connection is granted for ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension due to presumed exposure to herbicides during service. The Veteran's peripheral neuropathy claims are remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's appeal regarding a rating in excess of 10 percent for CAD is remanded due to conflicting medical evidence and the need for additional examination.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's cardiovascular disabilities, including bicuspid aortic valve stenosis and atrial fibrillation, are related to his service or any service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including respiratory illness (allergic rhinitis with sinusitis), nosebleeds, heart condition, hypertension, thyromegaly, prostate cancer, bladder cancer, and diabetes mellitus have been granted. The decision also remanded the claim for service connection for nosebleeds as secondary to sinusitis.

The Board denied service connection for a heart condition as there is no current diagnosis of the disability.

The Board has remanded the claims for ischemic heart disease and bilateral hearing loss due to new evidence showing worsening symptoms, and for a TDIU claim. The Veteran is required to submit lay statements from himself and others regarding his service-connected disabilities' impact on employment.

The Board has determined that further development is needed to determine if the Veteran's service-connected disabilities contributed to his cause of death, and thus the claim for service connection for cause of death is remanded.

The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions are granted, including sleep apnea, heart disorder, hypertension, left hip disability, low back disability, and tinnitus. The Board finds the evidence in relative equipoise regarding these claims.,However, several new issues of entitlement to service connection have been identified, such as chest pain, dyspnea, right foot stress fracture, right hip disability, osteoporosis, right shoulder disability, tremors, asthma, blepharitis, lipoma of the chest, and kidney stones. These claims are currently pending for further review.

The appeal for service connection of coronary artery disease has been dismissed as the Veteran's claim was granted in full. The appeal for service connection of whooping cough is remanded due to inadequate medical opinions.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, heart disability, kidney disability, peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, hyperlipoproteinemia, prostate disability, sinus disability, scotoma, and respiratory disorder are all remanded for further development.,Service connection is being remanded for the Veteran's heart disability, kidney disability, peripheral neuropathy of the upper extremities, peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities, hypertension, hyperlipoproteinemia, prostate disability (benign prostatic hypertrophy), sinus disability (allergic rhinitis), scotoma, and respiratory disorder.

The Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for service-connected coronary artery disease was denied as his condition did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Veteran's heart and respiratory disabilities were not found to be related to service, including on a presumptive basis due to exposure to herbicides. The Board also denied secondary service connection for right foot, left foot, right hip, left hip, lumbar spine, and cervical spine disabilities.

The Veteran's heart conditions, including ischemic heart disease and coronary artery disease, are granted service connection due to exposure to herbicides during service.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, coronary artery disease with graft bypass, squamous cell carcinoma, and prostate cancer due to incomplete records and potential exposure to herbicide agents.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to conflicting opinions regarding whether the Veteran's coronary artery disease is related to his service-connected PTSD. The case will be reviewed again with a new examination and opinion.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for accrued benefits based on pending claims for service connection for lumbar spine, cervical spine, bilateral upper extremity, and heart disabilities as no substantive appeal was filed.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disorder, including ischemic heart disease (IHD), due to herbicide agent exposure. The evidence did not support a finding of an IHD disability or cardiac spasms at any time during or recent to the pendency of the claim.