Other conditions decisions — 2023

The Veteran's service-connected right arm, elbow, and hand disabilities do not result in individual unemployability.

The overpayment of $497.43 was properly created due to the Veteran's failure to notify VA of his divorce, and the Board finds that recovery is not against equity and good conscience.

The Board denied service connection for breast cancer, finding that the evidence did not support a causal link to military service or exposure to ionizing radiation.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for service connection for osteoporosis, as secondary to her service-connected back disability due to inadequate compliance with previous remand directives.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate opinion in a previous VA examination. The Veteran's right leg disorder is related to service, and the examiner should provide more definitive opinions regarding the etiology of his condition.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete VA treatment records from New York City. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a neck condition is being returned to the AOJ for further action.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have undiagnosed illness or medically unexplained chronic multi-symptom illness related to service in Southwest Asia, and therefore, the claim for a presumption of service connection for joint, respiratory, and gastrointestinal disorders based on exposure to environmental hazards in Southwest Asia during the Persian Gulf War is denied. The claims of entitlement to increased ratings for digestive and skin disorders, hearing loss, service connection for COPD and OSA, and service connection for sinusitis and allergic rhinitis are remanded.

The Veteran has withdrawn their appeal, citing dissatisfaction with ongoing communications and lack of current issues.

The appeal was dismissed because the appellant requested to withdraw his appeal.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for head trauma, a neurological disorder secondary to head trauma, a right hip disorder, and a right thigh disorder. The evidence did not support a finding of current disabilities related to in-service motor vehicle accidents.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional VA medical records, as some relevant records are not currently associated with the record.

The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 due to a March 1998 VA surgery is being remanded as additional development, including obtaining medical records and providing a new VA examination, is needed before the claim can be adjudicated.

The Board denied a disability rating in excess of zero percent for the service-connected non-Hodgkin's lymphoma for accrued benefits purposes, finding that there was no evidence of active disease or residual symptoms from September 2015 to December 2015.

The Veteran's right shin splint and associated instability have been granted a 20% rating since March 17, 2023. The condition requires treatment for at least 12 consecutive months and is unresponsive to conservative measures.

The Board found that the servicemember's discharge was due to willful and persistent misconduct, which constitutes a bar to VA benefits. Therefore, DIC benefits are denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's UTI is not related to service and denied her claim for service connection.

The Veteran's appeal for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to March 28, 2014, on an extraschedular basis has been dismissed due to the opt-in to modernized review under the AMA.

The Board found the overpayment of VA compensation benefits to be valid and denied a waiver for $24,131.12 due to fault on the part of the Veteran.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to conflicting medical opinions and incomplete records. The Veteran's varicose veins and prostate hypertrophy claims are being reviewed again.

The Veteran's nasal disability is connected to service, and the Board has remanded for further development including obtaining an opinion on whether any malignant neoplasms found during VA examinations more nearly approximate the criteria for DC 6819.