Other conditions decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and procedural issues.

The Veteran's service-connected degenerative joint disease of the right great toe is currently rated at 20 percent, and the Board has determined that a higher rating is warranted. The case is remanded for further development.

The Veteran's right shoulder condition, including gleno-humeral arthritis, bicipital tendonitis, and RTC tendinopathy, was rated at 30 percent effective as of the date of this decision.

The Board has restored the Veteran's total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) effective November 1, 2007. The decision found that there was not clear and convincing evidence showing the Veteran had been capable of obtaining substantially gainful employment at the time his TDIU was terminated.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a skin disorder, finding that there was no evidence of a current disability related to his active duty service or exposure to herbicide agents.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right-sided abdominal hernia, finding that there was no nexus between his in-service injury and the current condition. The medical evidence did not support a diagnosis of a hernia during or after service.

The case is being remanded for further development on the creation issue and to consider if a request for waiver of the debt may be made at that time, given all the adjustments in this case over several years.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the amount of apportionment for support of his helpless child, and the Board has dismissed the case as a result.

The Board denied a waiver of overpayment due to the Veteran's fault in not timely reporting changes in his marital status, and because repayment would cause undue hardship.

The Board found that the Veteran was entitled to military drill pay for 51 days in FY 2016, and therefore his VA disability compensation benefits were properly reduced due to concurrent receipt of both types of payments. The appeal is denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a disability manifested by syncope, dizziness or vertigo due to lack of clear and unmistakable evidence that the condition preexisted service and was not aggravated during service. The Board also found no causal relationship between the current disability and any service-connected conditions.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's withdrawal before a decision was made.

The Veteran's service-connected right foot contusion is rated at 10 percent, which is the minimum rating available under Diagnostic Code 5284. The Board finds that this disability warrants a noncompensable rating as it does not more nearly approximate moderate severity. Additionally, the Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for additional development due to inadequate previous VA examinations and opinions. The Veteran is seeking service connection for a bilateral eye disability, including mild blepharitis and dry eye syndrome, which he claims are related to his active duty service in Southwest Asia.

The Board has granted service connection for metatarsalgia, claimed as Morton's disease. However, the issue is dismissed because the claim was fully granted in a previous rating decision.

The Board has decided that a remand is necessary to determine the cause of the Veteran's neck disorder, as the May 2014 VA examination did not adequately consider the Veteran's lay statements and testimony regarding in-service and post-service symptomatology.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his left toe bunion was denied by the Board. The current rating of 10 percent is appropriate as it considers severe symptoms including tenderness to palpation, swelling, callouses on the plantar aspect of the left great toe and pain on weight-bearing.

The Board denied service connection for basal cell carcinoma, finding no evidence to support a direct relationship with the Veteran's military service or herbicide exposure.

The Veteran's cause of death, acute leukemia, was not service-connected as it did not manifest in service or for many years thereafter and is not related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete evidence and for consideration of disability retirement records from the National Parks Service.