Other conditions decisions — 2000

The Board found that the veteran met eligibility criteria for fee-basis outpatient medical care due to his service-connected psychiatric disability, and thus concluded in favor of the veteran's appeal.

The Board found that the veteran's bilateral eye disorders, including loss of vision, represent the continuance or natural progress of his pre-existing conditions for which VA treatment was furnished during the 1990s. As such, compensation benefits under the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 were not warranted.

The Board denied service connection for residuals of a cold injury to the left hand as not well grounded, due to insufficient medical evidence linking the current disability to service.

The Board found that there was no competent medical evidence linking the cause of the veteran's death to VA treatment, thus denying the claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected duodenal ulcer, finding that the symptoms did not warrant a higher than 10 percent rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran's bilateral defective hearing does not meet the criteria for an increased rating under the applicable VA rating criteria. The claim is denied.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for dizziness, a rash on the arms and feet, numbness of the feet, a toenail disorder, and lumbosacral strain as secondary to exposure to herbicide agents.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability evaluation for his service-connected residuals of tendon graft, fifth finger of the right hand. The condition is currently rated at 40 percent disabling.

The veteran's claim for service connection for colds and a sinus disability due to residuals of the right parotid gland was granted. His claim for an increased rating for residuals of the resection of the right parotid gland was also granted, with a current evaluation of 100%.

The veteran died from lung cancer, which was not service-connected. The Board found that the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death is not well-grounded.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral foot disorder and right leg disorder, finding no evidence of a current disability or link to service. The claim for reopening the left leg disorder was also denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death due to adenocarcinoma of the pancreas, finding no plausible relationship between the condition and his military service. The appeal for educational assistance under Chapter 35 was also denied.

The VA determined that the current evaluation of 10 percent for gastroduodenal irritability does not meet the criteria for an increased rating.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral defective hearing. The issue of service connection for bilateral defective vision remains unresolved as the veteran's claim is not well-grounded.

The Board has determined that the claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is well grounded. The evidence supports a finding that the veteran was exposed to Agent Orange during his military service, and the death certificate indicates that his fatal colonic adenocarcinoma was due to such exposure.

The Board has determined that the appellant's service-connected post traumatic stress disorder warrants a 30 percent disability rating. The claim for lumbar and thoracic scoliosis with occult spina bifida is well-grounded, as new evidence has been submitted to reopen it.

The Board found that the submitted evidence was not new and material, thus denying the reopening of the claim for service connection for an upper respiratory disorder.

The Board denied service connection for postoperative residuals of a supernumerary digit on the right foot, finding that it was not incurred or aggravated by service and was a congenital defect.

The veteran's claim for a permanent and total disability rating for pension purposes was denied as he failed to report for a scheduled VA examination without providing good cause.

The Board has determined that the veteran's arthritis of the hands is not shown to have incurred in or be aggravated by his active military service, nor is it shown to be secondary to his service-connected burn scars. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding that the veteran's current arthritis resulted from his service-connected burns.