Kidney disease decisions — 2014

The VA examiner found that the Veteran's death was due to his service-connected conditions, but did not establish a direct link between any of these conditions and his military service. The cause of death is respiratory failure, congestive heart failure, and chronic renal insufficiency.

The Veteran's renal cell carcinoma was not present in service or for many years following his discharge from service and is not etiologically related to service. The Board finds the opinion of the VA examiner to be more probative than the Veteran's lay contentions, as diagnosis and etiology of renal cell cancer are matters requiring medical expertise.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death and found that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen the claim for dependency and indemnity compensation. The cause of death was renal cell carcinoma, which is not presumed to be related to Agent Orange exposure.

The Board has determined that there is no current evidence of a service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder, hypertension, peripheral neuropathy affecting either upper extremity, arteriosclerotic heart disease, or kidney disorder. The Veteran's claims for these conditions are therefore denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's chronic kidney disease is at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected diabetes mellitus, and thus grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of kidney stones, and therefore, service connection for this condition is denied.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to determine the current severity of his service-connected disability, as well as additional VA treatment records.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration due to a Joint Motion from the parties, including the need for clarification on whether the congenital ureteropelvic junction (UPJ) obstruction is a defect or disease. The Veteran's service connection claim will be reconsidered based on the additional evidence.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's liver and kidney disabilities are not service-connected, as there is no evidence linking these conditions to his active duty service or any service-connected disability. The medical opinions provided do not support a link between the medications he takes for his service-connected conditions and his current liver and kidney issues.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied as her claimed conditions are not shown to be related to her active duty or National Guard service.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for a bilateral ankle disability and a headache disorder have been withdrawn. The remaining issues of service connection are addressed in the REMAND portion.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus type II has resulted in complications including kidney disability and skin disability, both of which are service-connected as secondary to the primary condition.,The Board has granted service connection for a kidney disability (renal disease) and a skin disability (recurrent cellulitis and ulcers), both found to be secondary to the Veteran's diabetes mellitus type II.

The Board has ordered a remand for an addendum opinion to determine if the Veteran's service-connected hypertension or medications caused or aggravated his metastatic renal cell carcinoma, which led to his death.

The Board denied service connection for a kidney disorder, claimed as kidney stones, finding no evidence of chronicity in service or at any point after service. The condition was not shown to be related to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine if the Veteran's service-connected conditions, including hypertension, were a contributing factor to his death. The case will be remanded for this purpose.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed as he withdrew his appeals through his authorized representative.

The Board is remanding the case for further development, including providing notice of the reasons for the prior denial of his claim and obtaining medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's hypertension and kidney disease to include pyelonephritis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's kidney cancer is not attributable to active service or a service-connected disability.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for residuals of a hemorrhagic fever, which he alleges caused bladder and kidney conditions. The case has been remanded to obtain updated medical records and conduct VA examinations.

The Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and the Board denied his claim for service connection for cause of death.