Ischemic heart disease Board decisions

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and determining if the Veteran's heart condition warrants a higher rating.

The Board has dismissed the claims for service connection of a heart disability, left knee disability, COPD, and skin cancer. The heart condition claim was already granted by the AOJ.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a heart condition and TDIU due to inadequate compliance with previous remand directives. The heart conditions include CAD, atherosclerosis, and hypertensive heart disease. The exposure basis is not applicable as there was no ionizing radiation exposure during service. The issues are being remanded to obtain opinions on the nature and etiology of the heart conditions and their impact on employment.

The Veteran's appeals for a higher rating for coronary artery disease, service connection for arthritis in joints, and service connection for gall bladder removal are all remanded due to procedural errors.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, and a heart disability were dismissed because the appeal was improperly docketed due to administrative error. The Veteran had not yet been issued a rating decision in regard to his July 2023 supplemental claim.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative arthritis, PTSD, and a heart disability have been granted with effective dates of June 3, 2022.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for coronary artery disease was granted with an effective date of March 18, 2008.

The Veteran's cause of death and ischemic heart disease are granted as service-connected due to herbicide exposure in Thailand. The Veteran served at U-Tapao Airfield, where he had close contact with aircraft.

The Board has remanded the case due to an error in not performing a Nehmer review of the Veteran's July 1986 claim for service connection for chest pain, which was construed as a claim for coronary artery disease.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, degenerative joint disease of the lumbar spine, hypertension, and heart conditions, render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Board has granted entitlement to total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Veteran's prostate cancer, left eye nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy, left lower extremity and right lower extremity diabetic peripheral neuropathy, and coronary artery disease (status post NSTEMI) have been granted initial evaluations. Effective dates for these determinations are also established.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to PTSD and his TDIU claim, finding that there was no evidence linking his sleep apnea to his service-connected PTSD or any other service-connected condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disorder, finding that there was no evidence linking his current condition to service. The Board also found that any pre-existing condition did not worsen during his second period of active duty.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus type II is currently rated at 20 percent, but the Board finds that it does not warrant a higher rating. The lung condition issue (COPD) and heart condition issue are both remanded for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for diabetes mellitus type II, coronary artery disease, hypertension, bilateral eye disorder, right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, and left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy due to exposure to herbicide agents during military service in the Korean DMZ. The TDIU claim is also remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including coronary artery disease, posttraumatic stress disorder, diabetes mellitus, and tinnitus, rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment from April 30, 2014, to October 16, 2014. The Board granted TDIU on an extraschedular basis for this period.

The Board has granted service connection for a heart condition, chilblains and paresthesias of the bilateral lower extremities (claimed as cold injury residuals), neck condition, and low back condition. The left knee and right knee conditions have been dismissed due to withdrawal by the Veteran.

The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service connection claims, including heart disability secondary to hypertension, psoriasis, dry eye syndrome, and scars of the abdomen and lumbar spine. The effective dates for these claims are pending verification of all periods of active duty, ACDUTRA, or INACDUTRA.

The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of clarity in the record regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him in need of regular aid and attendance prior to February 24, 2021. The Veteran will be scheduled for an examination to address this question.

The Board has remanded the claims for diabetes mellitus type 2, heart disease, and peripheral neuropathy of multiple extremities due to inadequate VA examinations and incomplete medical opinions. The Veteran was exposed to jet fuels during service but exposure to herbicide agents is not conceded.