Other conditions decisions — 2018

The Board has remanded the case due to non-compliance with previous instructions and inadequate examination for rating purposes.

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the death of the Veteran, as the appellant no longer has standing to pursue this claim.

The Board found that the Veteran's right parietal occipital craniotomy and meningioma residuals are not shown to have manifested in service or for years thereafter, and are not shown to be due to his active duty service. The only medical opinions of evidence to address the etiology of the meningioma weigh against the claim.

The Board finds that the appellant's gynecological problems, including miscarriages, irregular menses with excessive bleeding, endometriosis, and fibroid tumors, which necessitated a hysterectomy in 1996, were caused by or incurred during active service.

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the death of the appellant, as it no longer has jurisdiction over the case.

The Board has denied service connection for heart disease as the Veteran's current heart disorders are not shown to have onset earlier than many years after service and are not caused or aggravated by any service-connected disorder.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn prior to the Board making a decision.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a current right eye disability related to service, and thus denies his claim for service connection.

The Board found that the Veteran's current skin disorders are not related to his active service, including presumed exposure to herbicide agents. The claim for service connection was denied.

The appellant's claim for DIC benefits is denied because she remarried before the age of 57, making her ineligible as a surviving spouse under VA regulations.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have a respiratory disability related to asbestos exposure or any other service connection basis, and thus denied his claim.

The Veteran's right hand degenerative joint disease of the 4th and 5th carpometacarpals has been rated as 10 percent disabling since October 2008. The Board finds that his symptoms do not warrant a higher rating during this period, except for periods from April 13, 2009 to May 31, 2009 and September 25, 2017 to October 31, 2017 when he was granted temporary total disability ratings due to surgery necessitating convalescence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for compensation for residual disability as side effect of medication taken for service-connected back disability, including extra-schedular consideration. The evidence did not demonstrate a current diagnosed disability and the available schedular evaluations were found to be adequate.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is denied as there was no informal claim for TDIU prior to the March 23, 2010 formal application. The effective date of March 23, 2010 is proper.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for an earlier effective date for her nonservice-connected survivor's pension, finding that she is entitled to the earliest possible effective date based on the date her claim was received (December 18, 2009).

The Veteran's claims for service connection for an eye disorder and increased rating for bilateral hearing loss were denied. The Board found that new evidence did not relate to the unestablished fact of a link between his current symptoms and service.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been received to reopen the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a broken dental bridge of the left jaw, thus denying the reopening of the claim.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for hypertensive vascular disease was denied as his blood pressure readings did not meet the criteria for a 10% disability evaluation under DC 7101.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for ethesioneuroblastoma, finding that there is no evidence to support a link between his time in service and the development of this rare cancer. The preponderance of medical opinions are against the claim.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's gastrointestinal disability is aggravated by his service-connected PTSD, and therefore grants service connection for this condition as secondary to PTSD.