Kidney disease Board decisions

The Board has ordered additional development to obtain the Veteran's terminal hospital records and a VA medical opinion regarding the cause of death. The Appellant seeks service connection for the cause of her husband's death due to Agent Orange exposure, but the evidence is insufficient to establish that any service-connected condition contributed substantially or materially to his death.

The Board has withdrawn the Veteran's appeal for service connection for low HDL levels, chronic disorder of the gums, bilateral eye disorder, to include glaucoma; and entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for HTN from October 27, 2010. The claim for service connection for focal sensory peripheral neuropathy of the left medial thigh has been granted. However, the Veteran's HTN prior to October 27, 2010 is not compensable.

The Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and the Board finds that none of his conditions are related to his military service or exposure to herbicides in Vietnam.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, cataracts, peripheral neuropathy of bilateral upper and lower extremities, kidney disease, erectile dysfunction, and coronary artery disease with angina are presumed to be related to his military service due to herbicide exposure.

The Board denied service connection for the Veteran's pancreatic cyst, liver cyst, renal cyst, left knee disorder, and initial higher disability rating for COPD. The COPD issue was granted with a 30 percent disability rating effective March 13, 2015.

The Veteran's kidney disorder and urinary tract infection are being remanded for further examination and clarification of the etiology. The skin rash claim is also being remanded.

The Veteran's appeal was denied for both issues. The temporary total disability rating for convalescence following the April 2013 surgery to replace a penile implant in connection with his service-connected erectile dysfunction was denied, and the claim for service connection for chronic kidney disease was also denied.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for an earlier effective date of January 27, 2015, for the award of DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to the prior final rating actions and the proper effective date being the date of the reopened claim.

The Board denied an effective date prior to September 4, 2012 for the grant of special monthly compensation at the housebound level due to the Veteran's TDIU being based on multiple disabilities and not a single disability rated as 100%.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's kidney disorder and residuals of severe strep throat are not related to his military service, and thus denied both claims.

The Board has remanded the case due to issues related to reopening a diabetes mellitus claim and service connection for various conditions secondary to diabetes.

The Veteran's claimed conditions were not present in service or within a year of discharge, and are not otherwise etiologically related to service. The Board denied the claims for diabetes mellitus, parathyroid abnormality, kidney stones, elevated calcium levels, hypertension, neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, and hypersensitivity to light as they were not shown to be due to herbicide exposure or any other basis.

The Veteran's portal hypertension is found to be secondary to his service-connected Hepatitis C disability with cirrhosis of the liver. The kidney disorder issue remains pending for further examination and opinion.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding his service-connected conditions and secondary claims.

The Board found that the Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, including renal cell carcinoma, dementia, hypertension, cardiomyopathy, hyperlipidemia, or atherosclerosis. The cause of death listed on his autopsy report was pneumonia due to Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death was due to chronic renal failure caused by granulomatous arteritis, and not related to service or herbicide exposure. The VA examiner concluded that hypertension and ischemic heart disease did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for colorectal cancer, kidney cancer, ureter cancer, bladder cancer, and throat cancer as secondary to Agent Orange exposure. The VA examiner found no evidence that these conditions are related to service or Agent Orange exposure.

The Board has granted service connection for a kidney disorder to include nephritis and hypertension, both found to be secondary to the Veteran's service-connected diabetes mellitus.,Affording the Veteran the benefit of the doubt, his kidney disorder and hypertension are etiologically related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Board has granted service connection for right knee disability and kidney disease, finding that new evidence supports the claims.

The Veteran's appeal is denied as his service-connected conditions do not warrant a higher rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.