Hypertension (high blood pressure) decisions — 2012

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to inadequate VA examination and remand instructions not being complied with.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining additional service medical records and providing a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's current hypertension is related to his active military service.

The Board found that the Veteran's hypertension and end-stage renal disease with dialysis did not begin in service or were otherwise causally related to his period of active service. The cause of death was listed as hypotension due to end-stage renal disease, coronary artery disease and severe peripheral artery disease.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has reopened the claim of entitlement to service connection for type II diabetes mellitus and granted a new rating. The Veteran's PTSD is rated as 50 percent disabling, but his left ankle scar does not meet the criteria for a compensable evaluation.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for hypertension and a visual disability that are related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus. The Board finds the VA examinations inadequate and requires additional examination by examiners who can review the entire medical history.

The Veteran's erectile dysfunction and hypertension are found to be proximately due to his service-connected diabetes mellitus, Type II.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding his claims of service connection for sleep apnea and hypertension. The VA examiner will be asked to provide an opinion on whether these conditions are related to service or service-connected PTSD.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions are not related to his service or any incident thereof, and thus cannot be granted service connection.

The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected conditions, including PTSD and diabetes mellitus, did not cause or contribute substantially to his death from aortic stenosis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension was not incurred in or aggravated by active service, may not be presumed to have been so incurred or aggravated, and is not proximately due to, or chronically aggravated by, service-connected disability. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding of service connection for hypertension.

The Board denied service connection for cardiovascular disease, to include hypertension, finding that there was no medical evidence linking the current condition to service.

The Veteran's claim for a TDIU rating was granted effective July 18, 2005. The Board denied an earlier effective date.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to lack of timely filing of a notice of disagreement for the denial of service connection for degenerative disc disease. The Veteran's claims for other conditions were denied as they are not compensable under VA regulations.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's current mild left ear hearing loss does not meet VA disability compensation criteria and there is no evidence of a current disability related to service. Right ear hearing loss was found to be related to active duty service.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims of service connection for osteoarthritis of the bilateral hands and hypertension, but remanded to obtain additional evidence regarding these claims.

The Board found no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to the claimed conditions, and thus denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, heart disorder, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is being remanded for additional development, including a medical opinion regarding the impact of his service-connected disabilities on his ability to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss and hypertension was denied. The Board found that the Veteran does not have a current disability as defined by VA regulations for left ear hearing loss, and there is no evidence of a nexus between his current hypertension condition and service or service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and hypertension are being remanded due to the need for additional development of evidence.