Hypertension (high blood pressure) decisions — 2000

The veteran's service-connected incisional / ventral hernias, status-post hernia repair is rated as noncompensable. The claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for collapsed lung with chronic obstructive lung disease, status post pneumonitis, degenerative disc disease and a pinched nerve of the cervical spine and hypertension due to treatment at a VA facility is denied as not well grounded.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded due to his failure to appear for a scheduled Travel Board hearing. The case will be rescheduled for a personal hearing before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for PTSD, hypertension, bilateral knee disabilities, and sinusitis. The right wrist disability claim was not well-grounded. Service connection could not be established due to lack of a current diagnosis or evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's tension headaches warrant a 30 percent evaluation, and he is entitled to reopen his claim of service connection for hypertension. The eye condition secondary to hypertension remains under appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for the residuals of an aortic valve replacement as secondary to service-connected hypertension, finding that there is evidence suggesting a relationship between the appellant's hypertension and his need for heart surgery.

The Board found that there is no competent medical evidence linking the veteran's current disabilities from hypertension and sinusitis to his active military service. The claim for a rating in excess of zero percent for status post fracture of the right little finger was also denied as there was insufficient evidence to support an increased evaluation.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertension is aggravated by his service-connected PTSD, warranting service connection for this condition.

The veteran's disabilities do not meet the criteria for special monthly pension on account of the need for regular aid and attendance of another person or being housebound. The veteran is also not entitled to housebound benefits.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a heart disorder, to include myocardial infarction and hypertension, on a direct basis. The claim was also denied for an increased rating for PTSD and for an effective date prior to June 3, 1991, for the award of total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.

The veteran's claims for service connection for arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease, hypertension and diabetes mellitus as secondary to his service-connected familial Mediterranean fever are being remanded for further review.

The Board found that the appellant is not blind or nearly blind, in a nursing home, or permanently housebound by reason of disability. Therefore, she does not meet the criteria for special monthly pension based on need for regular aid and attendance or being housebound.

The Board found that the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is not well grounded due to insufficient evidence linking hypertension, a nonservice-connected condition, to PTSD, a service-connected condition.

The veteran's claims for increased disability evaluations and special monthly compensation were denied. The service-connected lumbosacral spine disability remains at a 60 percent rating, which is the maximum under applicable criteria.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for service connection due to tobacco use in service are not well grounded, and therefore denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertension and avascular necrosis of the hips are proximately due to or the result of his service-connected residuals of an injury to T-8 and T-9 with arthritis and wedging.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased evaluation of his service-connected hypertension, finding that the evidence did not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent.

The Board found that the veteran's hypertension is not shown to be more than 10 percent disabling, as there were no findings of diastolic pressure predominantly 110 or more, or systolic pressure predominantly 200 or more. The current 10 percent rating assigned under either the old or new criteria for evaluating hypertension is appropriate.

The Board has granted service connection for a disability of the ankles and feet manifested by dependent edema as secondary to the veteran's service-connected knee disability. The claims for obesity and hypertension are denied.

The Board has determined that there is no competent medical evidence to support a finding of current stomach ulcers, an acquired psychiatric disorder, hypertension, or allergic rhinitis and sinusitis. The claims are therefore denied.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension and denied the claim of service connection for a skin disorder claimed as due to exposure to Agent Orange. The veteran's hypertension is found to be incurred during active military service, while his skin disorder does not meet the criteria for presumptive service connection based on herbicide exposure.