Other conditions decisions — 2015

The Board previously denied the offset of the appellant's SBP payments against retroactive DIC payments. The Court has now remanded the case for further proceedings, including providing the appellant with relevant legal authority and notice regarding her right to request a waiver of indebtedness.

The Board has remanded the case for issuance of an SOC regarding the issue of entitlement to an effective date prior to August 5, 1997, for the award of SMC, for accrued benefits purposes.

The Veteran's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is currently in remission, and there are no residuals of the condition or its treatment that warrant an initial compensable disability rating. The peripheral neuropathy of both lower extremities and residual scars have been evaluated as not more than mild.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to determine his competency to handle the disbursement of VA funds. The issue will be readjudicated after the examination.

The Board found that the Veteran's claimed psychiatric disabilities, including PTSD, were not related to his service and denied the claim.

The Board has determined that the overpayment of VA death pension benefits in the initial amount of $48,941.00 was properly created and granted waiver of recovery.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right hip disorder and left upper extremity disorder are not related to his active military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right great toe disability was not incurred in service and denied his claim for service connection. The issue of reopening a claim for erectile dysfunction is being remanded.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral flatfeet and declined to reopen the claim, as no new and material evidence was submitted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional examinations to determine the current severity of his service-connected left ulnar nerve palsy and right radial head fracture residuals, as well as obtaining any pertinent VA and private clinical records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's duodenal ulcer warrants a 60 percent disability rating, which is the highest schedular rating available under the applicable diagnostic code.

The Board has granted service connection for a right leg scar and found that the Veteran's current bilateral leg disability, including restless leg syndrome, is related to his military service. The issue of service connection for a bilateral leg disability remains pending.

The Board denied service connection for a personality disorder as it is not considered a disease or injury eligible for VA compensation benefits.

The Veteran's left elbow arthritis is granted service connection based on the presumption of service connection for chronic diseases. Service connection for dental disability (loss of two front teeth) was denied.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the Veteran's claim for service connection for right leg atrophy. The Board finds that the current disability of right calf atrophy is at least as likely as not caused by surgical treatment for his service-connected degenerative joint disease, residuals, right ankle fracture.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling VA examinations to assess the current severity of his ocular lymphoma and any residuals thereof.

The Veteran's spouse was granted a waiver of recovery of overpayment of VA death pension benefits due to the creation of the debt not being attributable to her fault, and repayment would create undue hardship.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a skin condition, malignant skin tumor, hypertension, high cholesterol, sleep disorder, rib cage injury with breathing difficulty, chronic low back pain, tinnitus, and coronary artery disease. The decision also noted that the Veteran did not meet the percentage thresholds for consideration of a total disability evaluation under 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a).

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development, including obtaining additional medical records and scheduling a VA examination to reassess the severity of the Veteran's service-connected pilonidal cystectomy.

The Veteran's appeal of his claims for service connection for thoracic spine and lung disorders has been dismissed due to withdrawal. The Board is remanding the claim for an initial rating higher than 10 percent for cervical strain with radicular symptoms of the left upper extremity.