Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2024

The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral knee arthritis and heart condition (claimed as irregular heartbeat) due to insufficient evidence regarding their etiology. The Veteran's service connection claim is denied.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for Epstein-Barr virus residuals is granted. The initial compensable disability rating for the right inguinal hernia repair is denied, but the case is remanded for further examination and opinion regarding chronic joint and heart disabilities potentially related to toxic exposure during service.

The Board has granted service connection for a lumbar spine disability and a psychiatric disability (major depressive disorder), but denied service connection for a heart disability.

The Veteran's service connection for ischemic heart disease and Parkinson's disease due to herbicide exposure is granted, as he served in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam era.

The appeal to establish the appellant timely filed a substantive appeal for TDIU and service connection for heart disorder and esophageal cancer is granted. The claim will be remanded due to outstanding medical records.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of coronary artery disease was denied as there is no evidence of a formal or informal claim prior to July 3, 2013.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the assignment of a 10% rating for bilateral hearing loss disability was denied because it is not factually ascertainable that the disability increased in severity within one year prior to July 3, 2013.,The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of tinnitus was denied as there is no evidence of a formal or informal claim prior to June 17, 2005.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for ischemic heart disease and bilateral hearing loss due to insufficient evidence or need for further examination.

The Board has granted service connection for a heart condition, finding that the Veteran's current heart condition is at least as likely as not related to his in-service exposures and experiences.

The Board has dismissed the issues of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and valvular heart disease as they have been granted in a December 2023 rating decision. The case is remanded for further analysis on the claims of bifascicular block, tinnitus, and their relationship to service-connected conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding service connection for hypertension, COPD, CAD, and supraventricular arrhythmias under a direct theory of entitlement. The Veteran's claims are related to his participation in Project SHAD.

The appeal of the service connection claim for heart condition has been dismissed due to withdrawal by the Veteran. The left shoulder condition claim is reopened based on new evidence.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn for issues of service connection and ratings for various conditions. The Board is remanding several cases for further development.,The Veteran's bilateral pes planus, heart disorder, cervical spine disorder, migraine headaches, sleep apnea, erectile dysfunction (ED), left knee disorder (secondary to right knee disability), bilateral thumb disorders, bilateral index finger disorders, bilateral little finger disorders, bilateral middle finger disorders, bilateral ring finger disorders, bilateral shoulder disorder, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities, peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities (secondary to lumbar spine disability), and bilateral elbow disorder are all being remanded for further examination and evidence collection.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment consistent with his educational and occupational background prior to March 30, 2018, and from October 1, 2019. Therefore, the claim for TDIU is denied.

The Board denied service connection for right and left shoulder disabilities, finding no evidence of onset during service or a relationship to in-service events.,Service connection was granted for heart disability (pulmonary hypertension) secondary to service-connected hypertension.

The Board denied service connection for heart disability, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol), back disability, shoulder disability, and knee disability as there was no evidence of onset during or related to active service.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for coronary artery disease with angina, status post myocardial infarction is remanded due to incomplete medical records.

The Veteran's appeals for an earlier effective date and a higher initial rating for his service-connected coronary artery disease have been dismissed due to the Veteran withdrawing his appeals through his attorney.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to failure to appear for scheduled examinations and lack of substantial compliance with previous remand directives.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for various disabilities due to insufficient reasons or bases in the previous decision. The VA examiner did not adequately address the Veteran's lay statements about his symptoms during service.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of a VA medical opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's heart disability. The Veteran should be provided with another VA examination by a cardiologist.