Other conditions Board decisions

The Board denied the veteran's claim for educational assistance benefits under Chapter 30, Title 38, United States Code, for a flight engineer examination taken on August 12, 2001, as the application was filed outside of one year from the date of certification.

The Board denied the veteran's claim of basic eligibility for VA benefits due to lack of service in active military, naval, or air service.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for an effective date earlier than November 1, 1996, for payment of death pension benefits.

The Board found that the appellant's pulmonary disorder, which began before his second period of service, did not undergo a permanent increase in severity as a result of military service.

The Board found that the veteran's cause of death, hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, was not caused by or aggravated by his service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder. The Board also determined that he did not meet the criteria for dependency and indemnity compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318.

The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that his chronic lymphocytic leukemia and pulmonary fibrosis were due to Agent Orange exposure.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death due to colon cancer, finding that there was no evidence linking the veteran's PTSD to his death and that the veteran did not have a service-connected condition present during active duty or within one year of discharge. The Board also found that the presumptive service connection based on herbicide exposure in Vietnam is not warranted.

The Board found that the cause of the veteran's death, ischemic encephalopathy and ischemic cardiomyopathy, was not related to his service-connected anxiety disorder. The Board concluded that there is no evidence indicating a causal relationship between the service-connected condition and the veteran's death.

The Board has denied the veteran's claim for service connection for Bell's palsy as there is no clinical evidence of current residuals related to a diagnosis in service.

The Board found that the reduction of the veteran's Hodgkin's disease evaluation from 100% to 30% was proper, effective June 1, 1999.

The Board has granted a 10 percent evaluation for ptosis of the left upper eyelid prior to May 16, 2002 and assigned separate 10 percent evaluations since then.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for chondromalacia of the right patella and sacroiliitis, finding that the evidence did not more nearly approximate the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.

The Board denied service connection for memory loss and chest pain, finding that the veteran's claims were not well grounded due to a lack of available service medical records.

The Board dismissed the appeal because no timely notice of disagreement (NOD) was filed within one year of the denial of VA death benefits, and therefore the appellant did not initiate an appeal.

The veteran is seeking an increased evaluation for his service-connected herniated disc at L2-3 and L3-4, with release of spinal stenosis. The RO has remanded the case to obtain additional medical evidence and consider various legal criteria.

The case is being remanded to the RO for further action, including asking the appellant whether she wants a hearing and scheduling one if desired. The appeal will be returned to the Board following appropriate appellate procedure.

The veteran's TMJ is currently rated at 20 percent, and the Board has granted a higher rating of 40 percent.

The VA determined that the veteran's left knee disability, diagnosed as traumatic arthritis, does not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service connection claim for residuals of a right hand fracture was denied due to an inability to obtain his service medical records, which were not in the record.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death, finding that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen the previously denied claim.