Hypertension (high blood pressure) Board decisions

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD and diverticulitis with IBS, prevent him from securing or maintaining substantially gainful employment. The Board has ordered remand to address the relationship between his PTSD and alcohol use disorder.

The Board has denied ratings in excess of 20 percent for diabetic peripheral neuropathy of both left and right lower extremities prior to May 22, 2014. The case is being remanded for further development regarding service connection for hypertension.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities rendered him unemployable effective July 13, 2011. The Board granted a TDIU based on the evidence showing his back and neuropathy disorders prevented him from engaging in substantially gainful employment.

The Board has decided to remand several issues related to the Veteran's service connection claims due to inadequate examination reports and incomplete medical records. The main reasons for remanding are for new examinations, especially concerning the lumbar spine and allergic rhinitis.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for hypertension, claimed as high blood pressure, is dismissed. The Board also remanded the issue of service connection for a right knee disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded in several instances due to insufficient evidence or need for further medical evaluation.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, hypertension, chronic kidney disease, and erectile dysfunction due to in-service noise exposure. The Board also requested a new opinion regarding whether his respiratory failure, pulmonary congestion, congestive heart failure, pulmonary fibrosis, hypertension, erectile dysfunction, and chronic kidney condition were related to his service or other factors.

The Board denied service connection for right ear hearing loss, hypertension, bladder cancer (due to herbicide exposure), and chloracne (due to herbicide exposure). The Veteran's right ear hearing loss was not linked to in-service noise exposure. Hypertension did not manifest during service or within a presumptive period. Bladder cancer is presumed due to herbicide exposure but the Board found no evidence of continuity of symptomatology. Chloracne was not diagnosed and there was no evidence linking it to herbicide exposure.,The Veteran's bladder cancer, which has been successfully treated, was not linked to service connection as a presumptive condition or due to herbicide exposure.

The Veteran's claim for service connection of coronary artery disease was granted, but the Board denied a request for an effective date earlier than February 25, 1994.

The Board has found that the Veteran's hypertension is not service-connected. Therefore, service connection for chest pain and erectile dysfunction as secondary to hypertension is not warranted. The Veteran is not otherwise precluded from establishing service connection with proof of direct causation.

The Board has denied service connection for hyperlipidemia as it is not a disability in and of itself. The claims for the remaining conditions are remanded due to outstanding VA and private treatment records, SSA records, and need for additional examinations.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings have been dismissed due to his death.

The Board has remanded several issues for further development, including service connection claims and a rating for allergic rhinitis. The Veteran's hypertension is not considered to have started during his qualifying period of service or within one year after it ended.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings are being remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations and review of his treatment records.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for bilateral ankle disability, bilateral hearing loss, and hypertension. The Veteran's claim of service connection for tinnitus is granted, while his claim for diabetes mellitus, type II, is also granted. The issue of aggravation of bilateral pes planus is remanded.

The appeals regarding service connection and disability evaluations have been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus is found to have caused diabetic cataracts of the right and left eyes, as well as a heart disability. The Board has granted service connection for these conditions on a secondary basis.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection of hypertension before the Board could make a decision.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for her service-connected eye disability is being remanded due to incomplete records and the need for a new VA examination.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current hypertension is related to his period of active service, and thus grants service connection for this condition.