Kidney disease decisions — 2008

The veteran's appeals for service connection for various conditions were denied. The Board found no evidence of pleural thick thickening, and the preponderance of the evidence did not support service connection for memory loss or chronic fatigue.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for kidney disease and bronchitis with sinusitis, finding that there was no evidence of an in-service injury or illness leading to these conditions. The Board also found that any current disabilities were not related to military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a low back disability, bilateral lower leg disabilities (both on direct and secondary basis), and residuals of a left kidney contusion. The evidence did not support these claims.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for residuals of yellow fever and loss of a kidney, finding that new and material evidence was not received to reopen these claims.

The Board has dismissed the appeal as the veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the reduction in the evaluation of end-stage renal disease with peritoneal dialysis from 100 percent to 30 percent.

The Board has remanded the case for additional VA examination to determine if the veteran's service-connected disabilities render him housebound or require regular aid and attendance of another person.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate reasons and bases for rejecting medical opinions provided by the appellant. The appellant must be provided with the required notice, including a statement of the disabilities for which the veteran was service-connected at the time of his death.

The veteran's treatment at St. John's Hospital was for a continued medical emergency, and VA facilities were not feasibly available to provide the care. The Board finds that payment or reimbursement is warranted.

The Board has determined that service connection is not warranted for the veteran's kidney stones with renal cyst, hypertension, or cerebrovascular accident.

The Board found that the cause of the veteran's death, metastatic renal cell cancer, was not caused by or substantially contributed to by a service-connected disability. The Board also noted that there is no positive association between exposure to herbicides and any other condition for which the Secretary has not specifically determined that a presumption of service connection is warranted.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records from May 2005 to September 2007. The claim will be readjudicated after these records are added to the claims file.

The cause of the veteran's death, which was due to end stage renal disease and HIV infection, is not related to his military service or any service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder, impotence, and a kidney disorder for accrued benefits purposes due to lack of evidence supporting these conditions.

The Board has remanded the veteran's claims due to insufficient information regarding his in-country service in Vietnam. The case will be reviewed again after additional research is conducted.

The VA treatment from September 2003 to present caused the veteran's adrenal insufficiency, but it was not due to faulty or unforeseeable care.,There is no evidence showing that the congestive heart failure with atrial fibrillation in 2003 was caused by VA treatment.

The Board has determined that the veteran's cause of death is not related to his military service or any service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current diagnosis of a kidney disease other than his service-connected renal insufficiency and renal cell carcinoma with a status-post left nephrectomy. Therefore, service connection for this condition is denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased rating of hypertension and service connection for retinopathy and kidney disorder as secondary to his service-connected hypertension.

The veteran's chronic renal failure is found to be proximately due to his service-connected hypertension, and the claim for service connection is granted. The issue of a higher rating for hypertension remains pending.

The veteran's claims for service connection for headaches, kidney disability, bilateral knee joint pain, hand joint pain, and throat blockage were denied due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.