Peripheral neuropathy decisions — 2010

The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions, including ischemic heart disease and hypertension, are granted due to exposure to herbicides in the Republic of Vietnam. The effective date is not specified.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the right and left feet are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions were denied. The Board found no evidence of in-service injury or disease, and the Veteran did not meet the criteria for presumptive service connection due to exposure to herbicide agents.,Compensation benefits for a prostate disorder were also denied.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims of entitlement to an effective date earlier than June 25, 2002 for awards of service connection for a lumbar disability, bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, tinnitus, and bilateral hearing loss. The issue of whether new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for a bilateral knee disability is also addressed in the REMAND portion.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for hypertension and bilateral upper and lower peripheral neuropathy as secondary to his service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II, have been denied due to lack of evidence supporting the presence of these conditions.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 50 percent, his avitaminosis and malnutrition are noncompensably disabling, and both of his peripheral neuropathy conditions are each rated at 10 percent. The appeals for increased ratings have been denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have metatarsalgia of the bilateral feet with idiopathic neuropathy that is related to service or a service-connected disability. The preponderance of evidence also supports the conclusion that the Veteran's hepatitis C was not incurred in service.

The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not meet the criteria for either automobile and adaptive equipment or specially adapted housing assistance.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, diabetes mellitus, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, are found to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation. The Board grants a TDIU rating based on these conditions.

The Board found no evidence of service connection for diabetes mellitus, peripheral neuropathy, or a bilateral foot disability due to herbicide exposure. The Veteran's claims were denied as there was insufficient medical evidence linking the current disabilities to his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, emphysema, and benign brain cyst with neuropathy of the lower extremities. The claim for costochondritis was granted but not increased beyond 10 percent. Claims for patellofemoral pain syndrome and synovitis of both knees were also denied.

The Board found that the September 1976 rating decision did not contain clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in continuing a 20 percent evaluation for lumbrosacral strain with recurrent sciatic neuropathy degenerative disc disease at L5 level. The Veteran's claim for an increased rating was also denied.

The Veteran's claim for TDIU is being remanded due to the need for a VA examination to assess his employability given his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claim for a total disability rating by reason of individual unemployability (TDIU) is being remanded due to the need for additional evidence regarding her employment status and functional impairment caused by her service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for polyneuropathy is being remanded due to incomplete records and the need for a medical opinion regarding the relationship between his service-connected diabetes mellitus and his diagnosed polyneuropathy.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, as well as alopecia areata (claimed as hair loss), were denied. The Board found that there was no current diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy in either upper extremity or lower extremity, and that any diagnosed left upper extremity ulnar neuropathy was not related to service, including exposure to herbicides.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection based on his character of discharge during his period of active service from February 26, 1965 to December 16, 1970.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, secondary to his service-connected right lower extremity disabilities, is denied. His claims for increased ratings for PTSD and right hip degenerative arthritis are also denied.

The Board dismissed the claim alleging clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in the March 12, 2003 rating decision that assigned effective dates for prostate cancer with erectile dysfunction; diabetes mellitus with eczema and nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy; and peripheral neuropathy of the left and right lower extremities associated with diabetes mellitus.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for automobile and adaptive equipment, specially adapted housing, or special home adaptation grant.