Other conditions Board decisions

The veteran's service-connected ventral hernia with bowel obstruction secondary to bladder cancer is currently rated at 40 percent, and the Board finds that this rating adequately reflects his disability.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, claimed as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, as secondary to exposure to Agent Orange due to a lack of evidence establishing an etiological relationship between the condition and the exposure.

The veteran's claim for a clothing allowance was denied as he does not have a service-connected orthopedic disability that requires a prosthetic or orthopedic appliance which tends to wear out his clothing.

The Board found that the veteran's cutaneous T-cell lymphoma was not incurred in or aggravated by military service and denied his claim.

The Board has remanded the case due to procedural issues and the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and conducting a VA examination.

The VA RO denied the veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for PTSD, finding that the condition was service-connected on its own merits and not secondary to Agent Orange exposure.

The VA determined that the veteran's residuals of a fractured mandible do not warrant any disability rating, as they are considered to be no more than slight displacement with no appreciable loss of interincisal range of motion or masticatory function but with some discomfort and perceived alteration of sensation in the right mandibular lip.

The veteran's overpayment of $2,830.75 was denied because the creation of the overpayment was not due to VA error and recovery would not be against equity and good conscience.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for payment of additional compensation benefits based on his marriage to his current wife, finding that no earlier effective date is warranted.

The VA has determined that the veteran's service-connected erythema multiforme does not warrant an increased rating as it is currently productive of no more than slight, if any, exfoliation, exudation, or itching on a nonexposed surface.

The Board has found that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for familial periodic paralysis, which was previously denied. The veteran's pre-existing condition worsened during active duty.

The Board has granted a 40 percent rating for the veteran's service-connected Reiter's syndrome, finding that it produces severe limitation of motion in the lumbar spine.

The Board denied an increased evaluation for the veteran's gunshot wound to Muscle Group XI of the left lower extremity, finding that the disability did not meet criteria for a higher rating based on muscle group severity.

The veteran's service-connected degenerative intervertebral disc disease does not meet the criteria for specially adapted housing assistance or a special home adaptation grant due to lack of loss or use of both lower extremities, blindness in both eyes with 5/200 visual acuity or less, or anatomical loss or loss of use of both hands.

The veteran's application for educational assistance benefits was denied because the course in question is not necessary for him to pursue his approved program of study and he has already completed it.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete service records and the need for a VA examination to determine if the veteran's Crohn's disease is related to his military service.

The veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred at Richland Memorial Hospital from February 14 to February 20, 1997 was denied because she has never been granted service connection for any disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and new legislation requiring further development of Army Reserve medical records. The DIC claim for cause of death is also being reviewed.

The Board found that the appellant timely perfected her appeal of the June 1998 rating decision denying service connection for the cause of the veteran's death. The appeal is granted.

The veteran's pension benefits for 1998 cannot be adjusted to take into account the medical expenses he reported in 2000 because they were not provided by December 31, 1999.