Liver disease (hepatitis, cirrhosis) decisions — 2022

The Board denied service connection for chronic liver disease to include hepatitis B and hepatitis C, finding that the Veteran's conditions were not incurred or aggravated by military service due to his own willful misconduct.

The Veteran's hepatitis C is rated at 10 percent disabling for the period prior to October 16, 2019. The Board denied entitlement to a higher disability evaluation and TDIU based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to inadequate opinions regarding the nature and etiology of his psychiatric conditions, hepatitis C, liver scarring, and headaches. The RO is instructed to obtain addendum opinions from appropriate psychologists or psychiatrists, clinicians, and a clinician.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for diabetes mellitus and hepatitis C due to insufficient evidence, including a lack of medical opinion or examination.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hepatitis C, finding that there was no evidence of its onset during active military service and concluding that it is not related to his service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for hepatitis has been reopened, and the Board finds new and material evidence to support reopening of the claim. The case is remanded for further development including obtaining VA treatment records and a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's chronic liver disease.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's hepatitis C was not incurred during active service and denied his claim. The Board also found remand necessary for additional examinations to assess the severity of his knee and ankle conditions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been granted. The Board has reopened the claims for gulf war syndrome, hepatitis C, PTSD, and anxiety disorder due to new evidence received since the last final denial.

The Veteran's hepatitis B disability resolved with no residuals, and he was granted a TDIU due to service-connected disabilities.,While the Veteran has been rendered unemployable due to his service-connected conditions, including PTSD, the evidence is in equipoise as to whether these conditions alone are sufficient to render him unable to obtain and maintain any form of substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the cases due to issues with the September 2020 VA examination and a failure to address all possible risk factors for hepatitis C, including dental procedures during service.

The Veteran's service connection claims for psychiatric disorders, cervical spine disorder, lumbar spine disorder, sciatic nerve disorder, right knee disorder, and hepatitis C have all been denied as the evidence does not support a finding of in-service onset or etiology.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for hepatitis C was dismissed because the Veteran died during the pendency of his appeal.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and are granted. The appeal is remanded for further development to determine the nature and etiology of his acquired psychiatric disorders, lung disability, right-hand injury, liver disabilities, and diabetes.

The Veteran's appeals for increased PTSD rating, initial hepatitis C rating, and service connection for scars of the left hand have been dismissed as he withdrew his requests before a decision was made.

The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence of in-service exposure to Agent Orange and that the Veteran's conditions did not have their onset or manifest within one year of discharge. The Board also found that the Veteran's conditions were not otherwise causally related to his military service.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, hypertension, and cirrhosis of the liver. The Veteran's claim was based on his belief that these conditions were related to his military service, but the evidence did not support a finding of service connection.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a bilateral eye disability and hepatitis C, as well as the claim for TDIU due to the need for additional development.

Service connection is granted for hepatitis C. Service connection is denied for diabetes, migraine headaches, right knee disability, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, left knee disability, and right leg disability.,The Veteran's service treatment records do not show any diagnosis or treatment of the claimed conditions within one year after separation from service. The Board finds that these claims are not supported by competent evidence.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for COPD, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, hepatitis C, and MRSA infection have been withdrawn. The appeal for service connection for PTSD has been reopened due to new evidence received more than one year after the April 2010 decision. Service connection is remanded for vertigo (balance problems), Meniere's syndrome, tremors, sleep apnea, and TDIU.

The Veteran's liver conditions, including cirrhosis, liver cancer, and hepatitis B post-transplant, were granted service connection. However, due to his gainful employment at a VA Medical Center since May 2015, the TDIU claim prior to February 26, 2019 is denied.