Other conditions decisions — 2005

The veteran's appeal is denied as she does not meet the service requirements for basic eligibility for educational assistance under Chapter 30, Title 38, United States Code.

The veteran's PTSD was initially granted with a 10% rating from December 1, 1995 to October 30, 1997. From October 31, 1997 forward, the VA denied an increased rating beyond 70%. The TDIU claim was granted.

The veteran's claim for payment of Chapter 31 benefits retroactive to May 2001 was denied as the courses taken did not comprise viable training for employment.

The Board found no evidence of herbicide exposure and denied service connection for prostate cancer and left ear hearing loss.

The Board dismissed the appeal because the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal, and thus has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this claim.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for residuals of funiculitis surgery, left side, manifested by a painful scar and stump of the left spermatic cord was denied as his condition did not warrant a higher evaluation.

The veteran died from cardiopulmonary arrest due to aspiration pneumonia. His claims for service connection and nonservice-connected pension were denied, but he did not have any pending claims at the time of his death. Therefore, accrued benefits cannot be granted.

The Board has ordered the RO to request VA clinical documentation from the East Orange, New Jersey VAMC for the period prior to January 10, 1991. The case will be remanded for further action.

The Board has determined that the veteran's visual disorders, including cataracts and myopic shift, are not service-connected. The hyperopia in service was a refractive error, and the cataracts were not related to active service.

The Board has determined that the veteran's chronic bilateral vision disorder, including bilateral cortical blindness due to a bioccipital infarction, was not incurred during active service and may not be presumed to have been incurred during such service. Therefore, service connection is denied.

The Board found that the veteran does not have a gastrointestinal disorder that was incurred in or aggravated by his service and denied his claim of entitlement to service connection for a gastrointestinal disorder.

The Board denied the appellant's claim as her request for a waiver of overpayment was not timely filed.

The Board granted an increased rating of 40 percent for the service-connected spondylolisthesis, postoperative.

The Board found that the overpayment of $1,941 was not solely due to VA administrative error and granted waiver of recovery.

The Board found that the veteran's right eye disability, evaluated at 30 percent, does not warrant an increased evaluation. The claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability was also denied due to lack of sufficient evidence supporting his unemployability.

The Board denied increased evaluations for the veteran's service-connected gunshot wound injuries to his left arm, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for higher ratings under VA rating criteria.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability rating in excess of 30 percent for his service-connected hiatal hernia with gastritis, as his condition did not warrant a higher rating based on the symptoms described.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to incomplete records from the Naval Sea Systems Command.

The veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the case is dismissed.

The Board has determined that the cause of the veteran's death, metastatic esophageal carcinoma, was incurred while in service due to exposure to Agent Orange. As a result, service connection for the cause of the veteran's death is granted.