Other conditions decisions — 2017

The Veteran's service is not considered to be during a period of war, thus he does not meet the requirements for nonservice-connected pension benefits.

The Veteran's left elbow cubital tunnel syndrome resulted in mild incomplete paralysis, warranting a 10% disability rating since September 8, 2011.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to obtain and maintain gainful employment, and there are no unusual or exceptional disability factors warranting referral of the Veteran's claim for TDIU for extra-schedular consideration.

The Board has determined that the evidence is at least in equipoise and, therefore, service connection for impairment of sphincter control is granted. The Veteran's TDIU claim is also granted as he is unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that there is no current respiratory disability other than the service-connected allergic rhinitis, and thus denied the claim for a separate respiratory disability.

The Veteran's diagnosed polycythemia vera (PV) has been etiologically related to his period of service, and the Board finds that he is entitled to service connection for this condition.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining an addendum opinion to address the etiology of the Veteran's cellulitis and whether it is aggravated by any service-connected disabilities.

The Board found that the Veteran's HIV was not incurred in service and denied his claim for service connection.

The Board is remanding the case for further development, including a readjudication of whether the Veteran's application for a waiver was timely and whether the debt in the amount of $8,998.14 was properly created.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to inadequate VA examinations and other procedural issues.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for an initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for a post left salpingo oophorectomy for ruptured corpus luteum cyst of the left ovary, finding that the evidence does not support additional staged ratings or higher ratings under different Diagnostic Codes.

The Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation greater than 10 percent for his service-connected residuals of gunshot wound to the right lateral chest wall, muscle group IV, subscapularis was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating as a matter of law due to VA regulations limiting combined evaluations for muscle groups acting upon a single unankylosed joint. The Veteran's claim for an effective date earlier than October 3, 2008 for his TDIU was also denied.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a separate and distinct left toe disability from his service-connected bilateral foot disability, specifically tinea pedis and onychomycosis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of arthritis in his lower back or right hip, and therefore cannot establish service connection for these conditions. The VA examiner found no evidence to support a nexus between the Veteran's military service and his currently diagnosed disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal of the initial rating for coronary bypass surgery has been withdrawn, resulting in dismissal of the case.

The Board found that the Veteran's right hip disability is not related to an in-service injury and denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected atrophy of the left forearm and hand resulted in severe incomplete paralysis prior to April 3, 2012, but not complete paralysis as of April 3, 2012. The Board denied a rating in excess of 70 percent.

Service connection for calcific densities in the soft tissues and periostalgia of the distal tibia is denied as they are not compensable disabilities.,The claim to reopen service connection for PTSD was denied because no new and material evidence has been received that relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for cancer of the right pyriform sinus and right tonsil, finding that new evidence supports a relationship to Agent Orange exposure. The Board then granted service connection based on this presumption.

The Veteran withdrew her appeals for increased disability ratings for dizziness, fatigue, subjective sensory abnormalities, and lumbar spine disability prior to the Board's decision.