Other conditions decisions — 2000

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for service connection for a duodenal ulcer is not well-grounded, and thus denied.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection and DIC benefits due to a finding of willful misconduct. The effective date was set at October 29, 1993, when new evidence was submitted.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for residuals of a shrapnel wound to the left hip due to new and material evidence presented since the October 1987 RO decision. The claim is granted as the veteran engaged in combat, his lay testimony supports an in-service injury, and there is no rebuttal evidence against the presumption of service incurrence.

The Board found no competent evidence linking the veteran's current left leg disorder to his service-connected scar or any other disease/injury incurred in or aggravated by service.

The Board denied the claim, concluding that the veteran's death was due to his own willful misconduct and not a service-connected disability.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of death due to Waldenstrom's macroglobinemia and low-grade lymphoblastic lymphoma, finding no evidence linking these conditions to service. The appeal for Dependents' Educational Assistance was also denied as a matter of law.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for basic eligibility for VA benefits due to a lack of verified service in the U.S. Armed Forces.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to a lack of medical records from 1945 to 1965, including potential gaps in the veteran's reported symptoms.

The Board denied an increased evaluation for the veteran's service-connected residuals of a blow-out fracture of the right eye with enophthalmos, finding that the evidence did not support assignment of an additional rating due to continued active pathology or decreased visual acuity.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral defective hearing, finding that new and material evidence had not been presented to reopen the claim.

The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's chronic epiphora to his period of active service and thus denied the claim.

The Board denied service connection for excision of an abnormal lesion of the cervix due to lack of evidence supporting a plausible claim.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding no competent evidence linking his terminal condition to military service or radiation exposure.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for skin, lung, and spleen disorders secondary to herbicide exposure. The claim for a head disorder was not addressed as it had been previously decided by the Board in 1985. The claim for prostatitis received a noncompensable evaluation.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for fallen arches due to new and material evidence. However, the claim is still denied as there is no competent medical evidence linking the current condition to his period of active service.

The Board finds that the veteran's service-connected pleurisy of the right base, right lung with pleural adhesions costophrenic angle contributed substantially or materially to his death. The VA medical examiner's opinion supports this finding.

The Board found that the veteran's income exceeded the statutory limit for Section 306 pension benefits, leading to their termination effective January 1, 1990. The appeal is denied.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his right foot disability is denied as the evidence does not show more than moderate muscle injury.

The Board found the veteran's claims for service connection for a skin disorder and gastrointestinal disorder, including as due to undiagnosed illness from service in Southwest Asia during the Persian Gulf War, are not well grounded. The current diagnoses do not support these claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for service connection for emphysema and vascular disease, as well as nicotine dependence, are not well grounded. The evidence does not support a finding of service connection.