Other conditions decisions — 2006

The VA determined that the veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the left true vocal chord is not related to asbestos exposure in military service.

The Board has dismissed the veteran's appeal for increased rating and SMC based on the need for aid and attendance or housebound rate. The claim for nonservice-connected disability pension benefits was denied due to excessive income.

The VA reduced the appellant's rating for bilateral keratoconus, with corneal transplants from 60% to 50%, which was upheld as proper based on the evidence in the record.

The veteran has withdrawn his appeal, and the Board is dismissing it.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected residuals of a right distal radius fracture with traumatic arthritis (dominant) are manifested by pain and decreased range of motion, but no nonunion or ankylosis. The criteria for a higher schedular evaluation were not met.

The Board denied the veteran's claim to reopen his previously denied service connection for a deviated nasal septum, finding that no new and material evidence had been submitted.

The veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional medical records and examinations, as well as a review of his vocational rehabilitation application.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have current residuals of gunshot wounds to his thighs, and therefore, service connection for these conditions is denied.

The Board determined that the overpayments were properly created and not solely due to VA error. Recovery of the overpayment would not be against equity and good conscience.

The VA denied the veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 and a higher rating for right knee TKA, finding that his liver disorder was not caused by or aggravated by VA treatment.

The Board has determined that the appellant's deceased husband did not have qualifying service for VA benefits, and thus the claim of basic eligibility for VA death benefits is denied.

The Board denied the veteran's request to waive recovery of an overpayment of compensation benefits in the amount of $8,484 due to his failure to notify VA of his incarceration and resulting reduction in benefits. The decision found that recovery would not be against equity and good conscience.

The Board found that the veteran's shrapnel wound to the right buttock area does not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 20 percent.

The veteran's claims for compensable evaluations for herpetic keratitis of the left eye and bilateral os calcis injury residuals on and after November 19, 1996, were denied as there is no evidence of impairment in visual acuity or loss of fields due to the service-connected conditions. The examiner found no problems related to the service-connected conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to insufficient evidence regarding the service connection of impotence, which may be related to herbicide exposure in service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for vascular insufficiency of his legs and feet, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating prior to January 12, 1998, or from January 12, 1998, to February 4, 1999. The veteran's service-connected vascular insufficiency was rated as 20 percent disabling since January 1, 1971.

The Board found that the veteran's neck injury was not directly caused by an essential activity or function within the scope of his vocational rehabilitation course, and thus denied his claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for the cause of his death and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits, finding that there was no evidence to support these claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's inner ear problems, diagnosed as chronic otitis media and otomastoiditis with a history of cholesteatoma, are proximately due to or the result of his service-connected perforated left ear drum.

The Board found that the veteran's decreased visual acuity in the left eye is due to anisometropia, a refractive error of the eyes. As a result, service connection for this condition was denied.