Hypertension (high blood pressure) Board decisions

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses is denied because the emergency room visit on July 11, 2010, did not meet the criteria for an emergency medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity.

The Board has ordered a remand to obtain an opinion on whether the Veteran's hypertension is caused or aggravated by his service-connected generalized anxiety disorder. The case will be returned for further development and readjudication.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hypertension is not related to his active service and was not caused or permanently worsened by a service-connected disability. Therefore, the claim for service connection for hypertension is denied.

The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for coronary artery disease with hypertension prior to August 26, 2006 and granted a 60 percent rating beginning on August 26, 2006.

The Veteran's service-connected hypertension has not been manifested by diastolic pressure of predominantly 100 or systolic pressure of predominantly 160, and the preponderance of evidence does not support a compensable rating for hypertension.

The Board found that the Veteran's hypertension was not present in service or manifest to a compensable degree within one year after discharge, and is not related to service. Therefore, the claim for service connection for hypertension has been denied.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of private medical expenses incurred in December 2008 and January 2009 is denied as VA did not provide prior authorization for the treatment.

The Veteran's total combined rating for service-connected disabilities is 90 percent, rendering him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and Meniere's disease (claimed as vertigo/loss of balance). The Veteran's other claims, including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, an acquired psychiatric disorder, a back disorder, and residuals of a ruptured appendix, are pending further development or remand.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and an increased rating for hypertension were denied. The Board found that there was no evidence of a chronic condition during service or within the applicable presumptive period, and that the preponderance of the evidence did not support a finding of a nexus between the current disabilities and active service.

The Veteran's cause of death was due to malignant neoplasm of the liver, with contributory causes of hypertension and diabetes. The Board found that none of these conditions were service-connected or related to herbicide exposure during service.

The Board denied service connection for painful joints and hypertension, finding that the Veteran's conditions were not incurred or aggravated by military service.,Specifically, the Board determined that degenerative arthritis other than arthritis of the back was not caused by military service and did not manifest within one year following any period of service. Hypertension was also found to be not related to military service.

The Board found that the Veteran's hypertension was not incurred in service and is not related to his diabetes mellitus. The claim for service connection has been denied.

The Board finds that the Veteran's hypertension began in service and has been continuously present since then. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type 2, was initially demonstrated many years after service and is not shown to be causally related to his active service or a service-connected disability. The Veteran's erectile dysfunction, peripheral neuropathy, tinnitus, and osteoarthritis of the left thumb are not shown to be causally related to his active service or a service-connected disability.

The Veteran's hypertension has not met the criteria for a compensable rating under VA disability evaluation guidelines.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for high blood pressure, as secondary to his service-connected diabetes mellitus with erectile dysfunction and coronary artery disease, is granted.

The Veteran's heart disability, including his heart transplant and AICD, is currently rated at 60 percent. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a higher rating.,Veteran has three surgical scars from his heart transplant, but they are not considered disabling enough to warrant a compensable rating.

The Board finds that the Veteran's death was not caused or hastened by a disability incurred in or aggravated by service, specifically his nephritis with hypertension.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to address the appellant's claims for DIC and cause of death, including obtaining medical records from the Veteran's final hospitalization and seeking a medical expert opinion on whether his service-connected disabilities caused or contributed to his death.

The case is being remanded for further development, including a VA examination to determine the current severity of hypertension and consideration of the claim for TDIU on an extraschedular basis.