Other conditions decisions — 2022

The Board has remanded the case due to additional development being necessary, including obtaining an addendum opinion or VA examination regarding the Veteran's claimed liver disability and its relationship to service-connected diabetes mellitus.

The Board has found the Appellant's accrued benefits claim to be timely and is remanding for further action on her substitution claim, which could affect the outcome of her burial benefit claim.

The Veteran's cause of death, rectal and metastatic duodenal carcinoma, is found to be related to his military service. The Board grants service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a bladder disorder and gallbladder disorder is denied. The Board finds that there is no evidence of a nexus between the current disabilities and service, including herbicide exposure. Service connection for a ventral hernia due to VA care is also denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's cause of death, gastric adenocarcinoma, is related to his active-duty service and grants entitlement to service connection for cause of death.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents and his service connection for cause of death. The VA will gather additional information about the Veteran's duties in Thailand, including whether he worked on C-123 aircraft used to spray herbicide agents.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to comply with prior remand instructions and for obtaining additional medical records.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of additional compensation based on his dependent daughter, N.K., who was born in July [REDACTED], 2015, is granted due to the application of equitable tolling.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for periodontal disease as there is no current diagnosis of this condition and it does not relate to his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a lung disorder, finding that there was no evidence linking his current condition to his military service. The Board noted that while he had asbestos exposure during service, extensive post-service asbestos exposure in commercial buildings provided a more likely cause of his lung disorder.

The Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disability, diagnosed as a mood disorder, is granted. The claims for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are remanded.

The Board has denied service connection for a skin disorder of the arms and back, as there is no current evidence of a chronic condition. Service connection was also denied for chest pain, with the Board noting that any such disability is less likely related to service. The Veteran's claim for H. pylori or other disorder manifested by intermittent abdominal pain has been remanded for further examination.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for varicocele disability and the issue is dismissed. The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for prostate disability, other than prostate cancer.

The Veteran's alcohol abuse is granted as secondary to his service-connected major depressive disorder. The appeals for dizziness, loss of balance, and syncope are dismissed because these symptoms are already considered in the rating assigned for tonic-clonic seizures.

The Board has granted new and material evidence sufficient to reopen the claim for service connection for cause of death. The appeal is remanded for further development regarding service connection for neuroendocrine lung tumor with metastases to the liver, lung, bone, and brain.

The Veteran's bilateral foot cold injury residuals are rated at a 20 percent disability rating, effective January 31, 2007.

The Board has granted service connection for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma due to presumed exposure to herbicide agents during service in Thailand.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis is being remanded due to the need for a VA examination and medical opinions based on an in-person examination.

The Veteran's surviving child did not file a claim for accrued benefits within one year of the Veteran's death, and therefore the claim is denied.

The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to a hospital acquired infection following his coronary bypass graft is remanded for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion from a cardiothoracic surgeon and/or infectious disease clinician.