Other conditions decisions — 2004

The Board has determined that service connection is not warranted for the cause of the veteran's death. The case is being remanded to comply with VA's duty to notify and assist the claimant under the Veterans Claims Assistance Act (VCAA).

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's withdrawal of the appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining an accounting of the overpayment debt and verifying the notice provided to the veteran. The VBA AMC must ensure all requested development is completed before readjudicating the claim.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a traumatic right leg injury.

The Board found that the appellant's income exceeded the statutory limit for death pension benefits, and thus terminated her improved death pension effective October 1, 1998.

The veteran's request for a waiver of an overpayment of non-service-connected pension benefits was denied by the Committee on Waivers and Compromises (COWC) due to his failure to submit a timely request. The case is being remanded to locate missing documents related to the creation of the debt.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current 'L' shaped scar posterior to the left medial malleolus is related to service, specifically a shrapnel wound sustained during combat in Vietnam. The claim for service connection is granted.

The Board found that the veteran's tumor of the pituitary gland did not meet the criteria for an initial rating in excess of 20 percent, as there was no evidence showing moderately severe hypopituitarism or specific manifestations required for a higher evaluation.

The VA determined that the veteran does not have dysthymia that is related to his military service.

The veteran is seeking a specific evaluation for PTSD, which was previously granted with a 10% rating effective from May 31, 1996. The case has been remanded to obtain additional medical records and determine the appropriate evaluation.

The Board denied service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and denied eligibility for Dependent's Educational Assistance. The appellant argued that her child should be eligible due to secondary service-connected conditions, but the Board found no evidence linking the veteran's death to any in-service symptomatology or pathology.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for DIC due to blindness caused by bilateral occipital lobe infarcts, finding that there was no evidence showing a direct causal link between the veteran's blindness and his death. The Board also found that VA treatment in November 1997 did not cause or contribute to the veteran's death.

The Board has determined that the veteran's spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis of the lumbosacral spine were incurred in active military service.

The Board found that the veteran's service connection claim for testicular/gonadal failure secondary to trauma is not warranted due to lack of evidence linking his current condition to service. The increased evaluation claim for recurrent spontaneous pneumothoraces, with residual scars, was also denied as there was no medical evidence showing a direct link between his service-connected condition and the current symptoms.

The veteran's cause of death, carcinomatosis with the gallbladder as the primary site, is presumed to be related to his exposure to herbicides during service in Vietnam. The VA has determined that he had a service-connected disability (PTSD and shell fragment wound residuals) which was not the principal or contributory cause of his death.

The VA denied a compensable evaluation for the appellant's strain of the left (minor) trapezius muscle, finding that his disability did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The VA has determined that the veteran's right foot disability, including hallux valgus with prominent bunion and multiple rigid hammertoes of the lesser toes, does not warrant a rating higher than 40 percent.

The Board denied service connection for disequilibrium, finding that the veteran's current condition is not related to his in-service shell fragment wound to the head.

The veteran's post-traumatic stress disorder was granted service connection as a consequence of his service in Vietnam.

The Board denied an extraschedular rating for service-connected residuals of a gunshot wound to the right upper trunk with Muscle Group II involvement, finding that the disability did not present such an exceptional or unusual picture as to render impractical the application of the regular schedular standards.