Hypertension (high blood pressure) decisions — 2021

The Board denied service connection for a right eye disability, bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, and tinnitus. Service connection was granted for hypertension.,Service connection was not established for the Veteran's right eye disability (including legal blindness), bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, or tinnitus.

The Veteran's service-connected fibromyalgia is found to be the cause or aggravation of his bilateral lower extremity sensory neuropathy, thus granting service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal for a compensable rating for service-connected hypertension has been dismissed due to his death.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for hypertension, right ankle disability, left ankle disability, bilateral pes planus, and low back disability due to additional development being required.

The Veteran's service connection claims for headaches, respiratory disability (chronic bronchitis), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), infection of the tonsils, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), fatigue, hypertension, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, shin splints, hemorrhoids, retracted testicle, and low sex drive have been granted. Effective dates prior to February 13, 2018 for bilateral foot bunions and tinnitus are denied.

The Board denied service connection for hypertension and ischemic heart disease, finding that the Veteran did not have a current diagnosis of these conditions and that any pre-existing conditions were not related to his military service.

The Board denied service connection for nerve damage of the left knee, right knee, and hypertension as there is no evidence of a current disability or nexus to service.,Service connection was not granted for left knee and right knee disabilities due to lack of medical evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise that it is related to presumed herbicide agent exposure.

The Board has denied an initial compensable rating for hypertension and remanded the claim of service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The case is being returned to VA for further action.

The Veteran's cause of death was due to metastatic pancreatic cancer, cerebrovascular accident (CVA), hypertension (HTN), and deep vein thrombosis. The Board found no service connection for these conditions.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, including as secondary to his service-connected residuals of a brain tumor. The evidence does not show that the Veteran had hypertension in service or within one year following discharge from service, and there is no competent medical evidence linking the condition to service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased initial ratings for his service-connected depression and hypertension, as well as the issue of entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities. Additional development is needed including obtaining VA and private treatment records, scheduling mental health and hypertension examinations, and attempting to obtain SSA records.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for hypertension has been withdrawn by the Veteran and his representative, leading to its dismissal.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension is related to his presumed exposure to herbicide agents during service in Vietnam, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claims for cervical spine disability, diabetes mellitus, and residuals of gonorrhea have been denied. The claim for recurrent gastritis has been granted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not have its onset during service or within one year of discharge from service and is not attributable to service.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension and secondary service connection for chronic kidney disease, both related to the Veteran's in-service exposure to Agent Orange. The effective date is not specified.

The Board has revised the effective date of service connection for hypertension from June 1, 2016 to June 15, 2015 due to clear and unmistakable error in denying an earlier effective date.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's hypertension is not related to service and cannot be considered secondary to a service-connected disability. The case is being remanded for further examination and opinion.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for a stroke, hypertension, and an enlarged heart due to insufficient evidence in the December 2016 VA examiner's opinion regarding the relationship between his military service and these conditions. The appeal is also remanded for obtaining additional medical records.