Other conditions decisions — 2005

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a dysthymic disorder related to his active service and therefore denied his claim for service connection.

The veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional medical records and an opinion regarding his lung condition.

The Board has determined that the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death is granted, finding an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence supporting the claim.

The Board denied the appellant's request for waiver of recovery of an overpayment of $306 in death pension benefits, finding that recovery was not against equity and good conscience.

The VA has granted a 10 percent disability evaluation for the veteran's service-connected defects of the fascia of the anterior tibial compartment of the right lower extremity, which is currently productive of functional loss in the form of pain and weakness equivalent to extensive muscle herniation.

The veteran's schizoaffective disorder results in total social and occupational impairment, warranting a 100 percent rating for all time periods during the pendency of this appeal.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for a laceration, left thumb. The clinical evaluations conducted since the June 1999 rating decision establish that the veteran sustained a fracture of the distal phalanx of the left thumb at some point in his life, and this injury is considered service-connected.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected right hip bursitis, as the last examination was conducted in March 2002 and does not reflect the current state of his condition.

The Board has determined that the veteran's postoperative residuals of a tumor of the right jaw are service-connected, resolving all reasonable doubt in his favor.

The VA has granted a 40 percent rating for the veteran's right hip retroversion, status post osteotomy, which is more than the initially assigned 30 percent. The disability is currently rated under Diagnostic Code 5252 for limitation of flexion of the thigh.

The appellant withdrew his appeal for VA nonservice-connected disability pension benefits.

The veteran withdrew his appeal, leaving no justiciable case or controversy for the Board to consider.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current right shoulder disability is not related to his service or an injury therein, and thus denied his claim for service connection.

The VA determined that the appellant's husband did not have qualifying military service for VA pension purposes, thus denying her eligibility for VA death pension benefits.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim of service connection for a facial nerve disorder and granted it, assigning an initial 10 percent rating effective March 30, 2004. The other issues remain pending.

The Board granted an increased rating to 20 percent effective September 30, 1999 for the veteran's service-connected right Achilles tendon injury.

The veteran's service-connected Hodgkin's disease is currently rated at 30 percent from January 20, 1995 to October 22, 1995. The Board finds that the manifestations of his Hodgkin's disease warrant no more than this assigned rating.

The Board has determined that the service-connected anemia, which is secondary to the veteran's service-connected gastrectomy, contributed substantially or materially in producing or accelerating the veteran's death. Therefore, service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is granted.

The Board found that the veteran's diagnosed gingivitis in service was not a disability for VA compensation purposes and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected disabilities did not contribute substantially and materially to his death or hasten it. The cause of death was listed as acute myocardial infarction, with other significant conditions contributing to death including sinus node dysfunction, hypoxic encephalopathy, and aspiration pneumonia.