Other conditions decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection for adjustment disorder with depressed mood due to an indication that it may be related to his active duty service. The case is being sent back for a VA examination.

The Veteran's BPH is aggravated by his service-connected diabetes, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the termination of additional VA compensation benefits for a dependent schoolchild before the Board could make a decision.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete medical records and requests for additional information from the Veteran.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient VA treatment records and a need for a more contemporaneous VA examination of the Veteran's respiratory disability.

The Veteran's service-connected other specified trauma and stressor related disorder is currently rated at 30 percent, which reflects occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform tasks. The Board finds that the current rating adequately captures the severity of his symptoms.

The appellant's claim for Chapter 35 education benefits was denied because she turned 26 years old after the Veteran became disabled due to service-connected disabilities, and there were no grounds for extending eligibility.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a total hysterectomy, including pelvic pain, abnormal bleeding, and secondary infertility is granted. A rating of 10 percent is assigned for yeast vaginitis.,Service connection for the Veteran’s extraction of tooth number 19 is denied.

The Veteran's claim for an effective date prior to August 1, 2013, for the grant of service connection for basal cell carcinoma is granted. The earliest evidence of a diagnosis of basal cell carcinoma found in the Veteran’s available medical records occurred on April 5, 2011.

The appellant's claim for accrued benefits was denied as it was filed more than one year after the Veteran’s death.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier beginning date for payment of VA compensation benefits was denied as the effective date assigned (May 1, 2017) is correct and the first payment was made on June 29, 2017.

The Board denied the Veteran's request to extend the delimiting date for Chapter 33 education benefits beyond December 1, 2018 due to his service in 2005 not qualifying as active duty under VA regulations.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for a back disorder, including lower back pain and L5-S1 disk herniation due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the relationship between his current condition and service.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to obtain Social Security Administration (SSA) records and for further development of the claim, including obtaining any additional evidence pertinent to the claim on appeal.

The Board found that the Veteran's overpayment of Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) monthly housing benefits was valid and denied his appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for cause of death based on direct evidence, effective February 8, 2011. The Veteran's cause of death was due to acute erythroleukemia, which the appellant contends is related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma may be related to his alleged exposure to herbicide agents during service, but further development is needed to verify this and determine if it meets the criteria for presumptive service connection.

The Board dismissed the claim of entitlement to a clothing allowance for 2014 as it was settled by the Durham, North Carolina VA Healthcare System.

The Veteran's short-term memory loss/cognitive impairment due to lightning strike is rated at 30 percent, effective from the date of this decision. The Veteran also receives a TDIU based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's hyperlipidemia is considered a laboratory finding and not a disability for VA compensation purposes, thus service connection cannot be granted.