Other conditions decisions — 2005

The veteran requested to withdraw his appeal, and the Board has dismissed it.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to consider the nature and extent of his intervertebral disc syndrome (IDS) and whether it warrants an evaluation in excess of 20 percent.

The veteran's claim for service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil has been dismissed due to his death.

The Board has granted the veteran's request to waive recovery of an overpayment of $8,976.66 in VA educational benefits due to administrative error and the veteran's financial hardship.

The Board has granted a 70 percent disability rating for schizoaffective disorder effective May 4, 2004. The veteran is also granted a total disability evaluation based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities from August 5, 1999.

The veteran's claims for increased evaluations for trigeminal neuralgia and muscle damage were denied as the evidence did not show that his conditions warranted higher ratings.

The Board has determined that the appellant's notice of disagreement was not timely filed, and therefore, the appeal is dismissed.

The Board denied service connection for refractive error and did not address the issue of an effective date for the grant of service connection for the inflammatory lesion of the superior retina of the right eye.

The Board found that the veteran was not exposed to mustard gas during service and there is no current disability related to such exposure. The claim for residuals of mustard gas exposure was denied.

The veteran's claims for service connection for fatigue and tremors of the left upper extremity, both potentially related to undiagnosed illnesses during his Gulf War service, are granted. However, due to lack of specific evidence linking these conditions directly to his military service, no rating is assigned.

The Board has determined that the veteran's gout was not incurred in or aggravated by service and may not be presumed to have been incurred therein. The claim for service connection is denied.

The Board found that the cause of death, metastatic colon cancer, is not service-connected and did not contribute substantially or materially to the veteran's death. The exposure basis for Agent Orange was also deemed irrelevant.

The Board has denied a compensable evaluation for calluses of the feet, finding that there is no evidence to support a claim based on service connection.

The Board has remanded the case for additional medical development, including a review of the veteran's claims file by an examiner to determine if his current skin disorders are related to his military service.

The VA determined that the veteran does not have a disability for which service connection can be granted, as his condition is a personality disorder, which is not considered to be a disease or injury within the meaning of veteran's benefits legislation. The VA found the veteran has a schizotypal personality disorder rather than bipolar disorder.

The veteran is seeking service connection for a thoracic spine condition. The case has been remanded due to the need for additional development, including an examination and medical opinion regarding whether her current thoracic spine disorder is related to her service.

The veteran was granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability with an effective date of March 2, 1994. The decision is based on the severity of his service-connected gastrointestinal disorder.

The veteran's claims for VA compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 and service connection for athlete's foot due to Agent Orange exposure were denied, as was his attempt to reopen a previously denied claim for dermatitis. The Board found that the evidence did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating any of these claims.

The Board found no evidence of a lung disorder or nicotine addiction during service, and the veteran's long-term smoking history post-service is more likely to have caused his current pulmonary problems.

The Board found that the veteran's facial and dental injuries were not directly caused by an essential activity or function within the scope of his VA vocational rehabilitation course, thus denying his claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.