Hypertension (high blood pressure) decisions — 2017

The Veteran's hypertension is presumed to have manifested within a year of his service separation, and he is granted service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's sleep apnea is found to be etiologically related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.,The status of the Veteran's hypertension and cervical spine disability service connection claims remains unknown due to missing records.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses is being remanded due to the need to secure additional VA treatment records and conduct further development.

The Board has reopened the claims for loss of use of the left arm, skin cancer, HTN, and spina bifida occulta due to new evidence submitted. However, service connection remains denied as there is no medical evidence linking these conditions to military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension did not have an onset in service or within a year of service, is not related to service, and is not caused by or aggravated by his diabetes or sleep apnea disabilities. As such, the claim for service connection for hypertension must be denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension did not originate during service, was not manifest to a compensable degree within one year of service separation, and was not caused or aggravated by his active service. The Board also found that it is less likely than not that the Veteran's current hypertension was caused or aggravated by his service-connected PTSD.

The Board finds that the Veteran's hypertension is not related to his active service, including presumed in-service exposure to herbicide agents. The claim for service connection is denied.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depression. The Veteran's diagnosed depression was not incurred in or aggravated by active service.,Service connection for hypertension has not been established as the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of hypertension during service and there is no evidence showing that his current condition is related to service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development and readjudication due to the need to obtain post-service treatment records related to the Veteran's hypertension.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and hypertension were not incurred or aggravated by his active service, and therefore denied both claims.

The Veteran's hypertension is not service-connected as it was a preexisting condition that did not worsen during his second period of active service.

The Veteran's pruritus nodularis is proximately due to or the result of his service-connected diabetes mellitus and/or nephropathy. The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence supports this conclusion.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for hypertension, insomnia, and joint pain. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to service or secondary to his service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's hypertension has been granted an initial rating of 10 percent, effective from the date of the June 2017 Court decision.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed as there is no valid Notice of Disagreement or substantive appeal filed for the issues of increased ratings for bilateral cortical cataracts, diabetes mellitus type 2 with hypertension and erectile dysfunction (ED), and paranoid schizophrenia.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD is granted at a 50% rating prior to February 11, 2016. The Board finds that the next higher rating of 70% for PTSD is not warranted as his functional impairment does not meet the criteria for deficiencies in most areas.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's COPD with smoking induced emphysema and hypertension are not related to his service, including exposure to environmental hazards in Iraq. The claim for COPD is denied, while the claim for hypertension remains pending as it requires further development.

The Veteran's appeals of the issues of entitlement to service connection for hypertension, high cholesterol, and a back disorder have been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal prior to the Board's decision.

The Veteran's hypertension and tension headaches were not granted service connection, while the issue of residuals associated with facial injuries, status-post surgery is pending.

The Board has denied reopening of the Veteran's previously denied claims for service connection for various conditions, finding that no new and material evidence was submitted to support these claims.