Other conditions decisions — 2010

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development due to the need for updated medical examination and consideration of his claim.

The Board has granted death pension benefits effective from March 21, 2006. The appellant initially filed a claim for death pension in July 2004 after her daughter's death and Social Security Administration benefits were terminated.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of CAD or ED, and there is no evidence linking these conditions to service. The Board also found insufficient medical evidence to support the claim for secondary service connection for ED based on diabetes mellitus II.

The Board has determined that the appellant cannot be recognized as the Veteran's surviving spouse for VA benefits purposes due to lack of residence in a jurisdiction recognizing common law marriage and failure to hold themselves out as husband and wife.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including a VA examination to assess the severity of his Raynaud's syndrome and whether it is distinct from his service-connected sensory loss.

The Board found that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen the claim for service connection for cause of death, thus denying the reopening.

The Board has determined that the educational overpayment at issue in this appeal, in the calculated amount of $1,920.66, has been properly created and assessed against the appellant.

The Board has reopened the claim of service connection for a ventral hernia and remanded it for further development, including obtaining medical records from Dr. Arnold and arranging for an examination to determine if the Veteran's current ventral hernia is related to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for an evaluation in excess of 20 percent for his status post L1 compression fracture prior to December 15, 2008 was denied as the evidence did not show that he met the criteria for a higher rating under the General Rating Formula for Diseases and Injuries of the Spine.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to insufficient verification of the appellant's claimed service. The claim will be reconsidered after receiving additional information from the National Personnel Record Center.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient VCAA notice and additional development is required before the claim can be adjudicated.

The Veteran's service-connected right elbow contusion is rated as noncompensable. The RO granted service connection for the right knee disabilities, but did not assign a specific rating due to lack of evidence showing arthritis or instability.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for cellulitis, finding no current disability and noting that there is no medical evidence linking the post-service instance of cellulitis to the instance during service.

The Board found no current evidence of Reiter's syndrome and concluded that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for higher ratings for his service-connected subtotal gastrectomy for duodenal ulcer was denied. The effective date of the current 40 percent evaluation remains unchanged.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining a medical opinion from a cardiologist regarding whether VA hospital care and treatment caused or contributed to the Veteran's death. The issues of entitlement to DIC under both 38 C.F.R. § 3.312 and 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 are also being remanded.

The Board denied an increased evaluation for the Veteran's service-connected right clavicle fracture, finding that the disability did not meet or approximate criteria for a rating higher than 20 percent.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of death due to laryngeal cancer, finding that there was no radiation exposure in service and thus no basis for a radiogenic disease claim. The DIC claim under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 was also denied as the Veteran did not meet the criteria for total disability based on service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's skin condition, including lichen planus of the upper back, upper arms and lower extremities, is found to be related to his service-connected lichen planus of the penis. The Veteran's PTSD disability picture does not present such an exceptional or unusual disability picture that the available schedular evaluations are inadequate.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current left or right leg disability and therefore, service connection for these conditions cannot be granted. The lumbosacral strain claim is also denied as it did not meet the criteria for an increased rating.