Other conditions Board decisions

The Board has granted service connection for a right inguinal hernia and assigned a 10 percent rating. The claim for higher evaluations of the other conditions remains pending.

The Veteran's ulcerative colitis with anemia leading to gallbladder removal is rated at the highest possible rating of 100 percent due to its severe and unresponsive nature.

The Board found that the appellant and the Veteran were not married prior to the Veteran's death, thus denying her eligibility as a surviving spouse for VA benefits.

The Veteran's former stepchild is not considered a child of the Veteran due to their separation, and thus he is not eligible for an apportionment of the Veteran's disability compensation benefits.

The Veteran's claim for SMC is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining an opinion regarding whether his cognitive disorder and cardiac disability are related to service-connected PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hip disabilities have been evaluated as chronic strains and do not meet the criteria for higher ratings based on current symptomatology. The VA examinations did not show any significant limitation of motion or other disabling conditions.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection for lung nodules.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral spondylosis and spondylothesis of L5-S1, but further development is needed before the issue can be addressed on its merits.

The Board has reopened the appellant's claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to new evidence showing exposure to herbicide agents during military service in Vietnam. The claim is granted.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death, Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML) due to or as a consequence of myelodysplastic syndrome, was not caused by or aggravated by service-connected conditions.

The Board found that the overpayment of compensation benefits for a dependent spouse was validly created and denied the Veteran's claim for waiver of recovery.

The Veteran does not have a left heel disability that is attributable to his military service and the claim for service connection is denied.

The Board has granted service connection for the residuals of right and left lower extremity cold injuries, finding that the Veteran's current diagnoses are related to his in-service exposure to cold weather conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for additional development, including a VA examination and updated treatment records. The issue of service connection for genital warts will be reconsidered based on the new evidence.

The Board finds that arthritis of the hands was not incurred during service and is not presumed to have been caused by service. The preponderance of evidence does not support a finding that the current condition is related to military service.

The Veteran is granted SMC at the 'r-2' level based on need for aid and attendance, but denied SMC based on loss of use of upper extremities.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and private eye examination records and conducting a new VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected left eye scotoma.

The Board has determined that additional development is necessary in this case, including obtaining the Veteran's service medical records and seeking a VA examination to determine the etiology of her gastrointestinal disorder. The appeal will be remanded for these actions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 25, 2007 for the grant of service connection for a psychotic disorder. The earliest document that can be accepted as a claim was filed on January 25, 2007.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim of service connection for residuals of trigeminal neuralgia. The Veteran's in-service symptoms, including facial pain, are considered related to his later-diagnosed condition of trigeminal neuralgia.