Ischemic heart disease decisions — 2025

The Board granted service connection for coronary artery disease and valvular heart disease status post aortic valve replacement as proximately due to the Veteran's service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder, and also granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability for the period prior to August 17, 2023.

The Board remands the claims for service connection due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including inadequate VA examinations and failure to obtain etiological opinions.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for Type II diabetes mellitus and unstable angina and/or coronary artery disease, finding that there was no credible evidence to support a link between these conditions and his military service.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a heart condition, back disability, nodes in lungs, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, and sleep disorder to obtain additional evidence.

The Board remands the claim for a heart condition to schedule a VA examination due to a TERA memorandum indicating participation in a TERA and the need for an opinion on etiology.

The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for a higher level of special monthly compensation (SMC) as he does not meet the criteria for an increased rate based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Board granted service connection for coronary artery disease (CAD) based on the Veteran's presumed exposure to herbicides during his service in Vietnam.

The Board granted service connection for basal cell carcinoma and a higher initial disability rating of 70 percent for other specified trauma-and-stressor-related disorder, while denying increased ratings for lumbosacral strain, right lower radiculopathy, bilateral hearing loss, chronic rhinitis, tension headaches, and mitral valve prolapse.

The Board denied service connection for a heart disability, including coronary artery disease (CAD), and right and left foot disabilities, including osteoarthritis, as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's military service.

The Board denied an effective date earlier than May 26, 2016, for a separate rating for right knee instability and left knee instability. The claims for higher ratings based on limitation of motion and instability of the knees, separate ratings for meniscus conditions of the knees, and secondary service connection claims were remanded.

The Board denied service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral cataracts, dry eye syndrome, allergic conjunctivitis, valvular heart disease, cardiomyopathy, and atrial fibrillation as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred in or caused by an in-service event.

The claim for service connection for valvular heart disease is dismissed as the Veteran was granted a full grant of benefits for coronary artery disease, which is considered a full grant of the benefits sought on appeal.

The Board granted a 30 percent rating for asthma but denied all other claims, including service connection for various conditions and a compensable rating for scars between the scapulae.

The Board denied service connection for hypertension, carotid artery disease, coronary artery disease, and renal artery disease as they were not shown to be chronic in service or manifest within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology was not established; and there is no evidence that any of these disabilities are otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for the grant of service connection for bilateral upper and lower extremity radiculopathy, remanded claims for increased ratings for knee and spine disabilities, and remanded claims for service connection for coronary artery disease, sleep apnea, and GERD.

The Board granted service connection for a heart condition as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected lymphedema and granted an initial 20% rating for a painful and unstable scar on the right mid-shin, effective April 14, 2022. Other claims were remanded.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, heart disability, diabetes mellitus, and neuropathy, to obtain additional evidence and a new medical opinion.

The Board granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) effective July 20, 2021, but denied an initial disability rating in excess of 50 percent for obstructive sleep apnea.

The Board remands the claim for a higher disability rating prior to July 18, 2024 for ischemic heart disease with angina and coronary artery stent placement due to pre-decisional errors in obtaining evidence.

The Board granted the eligibility of attorneys A.B.J., E.G., and S.D. to receive direct payment of fees from past due benefits awarded in a June 2024 rating decision granting service connection for coronary artery disease, but remanded the issue of the reasonableness of the amount of attorney fees.