Hypertension (high blood pressure) decisions — 2006

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for proper VCAA notice and a VA examination.

The veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including obtaining medical records and arranging for VA examinations to determine the etiology of his Hepatitis C, hypertension, and impotency.

The veteran's nonservice-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for special monthly pension based on need for regular aid and attendance or housebound status due to his overall functional independence.

The Board is remanding the veteran's claims for additional development due to the complexity of the issues and need for further medical examination.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertensive heart disease and hypertension originated in service, and they caused or contributed substantially to his death. Therefore, service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is granted.

The Board has determined that the cause of the veteran's death, pulmonary hypertension, is not service-connected.

The Board has denied the veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected hypertension, finding that the evidence does not support a higher evaluation.

The Board found that the veteran does not have hypertension that was present in or related to his active service, and it is not related to his service-connected PTSD. Therefore, the claim for service connection for hypertension secondary to PTSD was denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection of PTSD due to lack of credible corroborating evidence of in-service stressors. The issue regarding reopening his hypertension claim is being remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for type 2 diabetes mellitus and dismissed the issue of entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for hypertension.

The Board has decided to remand the veteran's claims due to incomplete VCAA notice and need for additional medical records. The veteran will be provided with proper VCAA notices, his treatment records from Sundance Medical Center and VA Medical Center in Henderson, Nevada are requested, and he needs to undergo VA examinations for varicose veins, low back disorder, and hypertension.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including depression and PTSD, and hypertension. The Board found that there was no credible supporting evidence to corroborate the veteran's claimed stressors related to his military service, and thus denied service connection for PTSD. There is also no current diagnosis or treatment record for hypertension within the one-year presumptive period.

The Board found no basis to assign an initial evaluation greater than 10 percent for hypertension prior to December 4, 2002.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected anxiety disorder with depression aggravated his hypertension, and therefore grants service connection for hypertension on a secondary basis.

The veteran's appeal is remanded due to insufficient evidence for service connection of PTSD and hypertension, post-operative intracranial aneurysm. The case must be placed on remand status to provide the veteran another opportunity to provide specific information about his claimed stressors and obtain corroborating evidence from appropriate entities.

The Board found no evidence of a link between the veteran's service-connected PTSD and his current hypertension or coronary artery disease, thus denying the claim.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension and denied an initial compensable evaluation for sickle cell disease.

The Board has determined that the VA examiner's opinion is flawed due to an incorrect factual premise and finds that a new examination with medical opinion regarding the relationship between hypertension and service-connected diabetes mellitus is needed.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, hypertension, and coronary artery disease. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection for these conditions.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including high blood pressure, prostatitis and erectile dysfunction, alcohol abuse due to PTSD, chronic neuropathic facial pain, and a low back disability. The appeals were based on direct evidence rather than presumptive exposure to herbicides or other factors.