Other conditions decisions — 2003

The Board has ordered the VA to obtain missing service medical records and other relevant evidence in order to make a determination on whether the veteran's cause of death is related to his military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a lump in his left breast and increased evaluations for his knee disabilities. The evidence did not support the presence of a current lump in the left breast, nor was there sufficient medical evidence to establish that any current knee disability is related to military service.

The Board has granted service connection for the veteran's right Achilles tendon injury and assigned a 10 percent disability rating, but the veteran is seeking an increased rating.

The Board has granted the veteran's claim of service connection for carpal cysts, finding that the cysts likely began during her military service and are not due to any other cause.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bruxism as secondary to a service-connected low back disorder.

The Board has granted a 30 percent rating for the veteran's service-connected disorder of the colon and rectum, variously diagnosed, based on alternating diarrhea and constipation with more or less constant abdominal distress.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to a need for additional evidence and consideration.

The Board denied an increased rating for residuals of a tonsillectomy and also denied service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The claimant failed to report for his scheduled VA examination, resulting in the denial of his current claim.

The Board found that the overpayment was not created through fraud, misrepresentation of a material fact, or bad faith by the appellant. Recovery of the overpayment would not be against equity and good conscience.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 due to lack of evidence showing that his disabilities were caused by VA treatment or hospital care.

The VA has denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his stress fractures of the right and left proximal tibia, finding that there is no evidence of moderate knee or ankle disability.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for a nervous disorder due to new and material evidence submitted since the prior denial. The case is now remanded for further development.

The Board found that the veteran's congestive heart failure and myocardial infarction were not incurred in service or due to a service-connected disability. The claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 was also denied as there was no direct causal connection between the veteran's participation in VA vocational rehabilitation training and his heart condition.

The Board found that the veteran's left shoulder disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service and is not related to his service-connected right shoulder disorder. The claim for increased evaluation of the right shoulder disability will be remanded.

The Board has granted a 40 percent evaluation for residuals of a shell fragment wound of the right scapula, effective from November 1, 2003. The other issues have been resolved in favor of the veteran.

The Board denied the claim of service connection for the cause of the veteran's death due to insufficient evidence and a lack of well-groundedness.

The Board has granted an increased rating of 10 percent for the appellant's service-connected hallux valgus of the left foot with calluses, but denied a compensable rating for his right foot disability.

The Board has granted an increased rating to 40 percent for the service-connected herniated disc, L5-S1. The veteran appeals for a higher rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left foot disorder, characterized as abnormally shortened first ray of the left foot with a neuritis of the third intermetatarsal space, is related to her active service and grants her claim for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a sleeping disorder, finding no current diagnosis and no competent medical evidence linking any current condition to service.