Peripheral neuropathy decisions — 2018

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss, bilateral upper and lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and colon cancer as due to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The decision is based on the presumption of exposure to contaminants in drinking water at Camp Lejeune.

The Veteran's bilateral upper extremity peripheral neuropathy is proximately due to his service-connected diabetes mellitus. The Board grants service connection for this condition on a secondary basis.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities or left upper extremity, and therefore, service connection for these conditions is denied.

The appellant has withdrawn his appeal, and as such, there are no allegations of errors for appellate consideration.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions are not related to his active service and have denied his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's diabetes, hypertension, peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities, and erectile dysfunction are not service connected as they are not related to his military service.

The Board has determined that the reduction of the Veteran's disability rating for peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity from 40 percent to 20 percent effective May 13, 2011 was proper based on evidence showing improvement in his condition.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed peripheral neuropathy, including exposure to cold weather conditions during service.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to his death, and no service connection decision could be made.

The Veteran's service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder is already compensated for, and there is no controversy regarding memory loss.,Prostate cancer, diabetes mellitus, and coronary artery disease are presumed due to herbicide exposure in service.,Peripheral neuropathy is secondary to the Veteran's diabetes mellitus.,Bilateral hearing loss does not meet VA criteria for a disability. Tinnitus was less likely than not related to service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, PTSD, and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremity are granted. The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied. The claim for service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremity is denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities is not related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus.,The Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of early-onset peripheral neuropathy, as required for presumptive service connection under herbicide exposure.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial compensable rating for erectile dysfunction was withdrawn. The Board granted a 20 percent rating each for peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities.,Service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II was granted with an effective date of November 3, 2003.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including prostate cancer, diabetes mellitus type 2, cataracts with choroidal nevus left eye, peripheral neuropathy of each extremity, and erectile dysfunction, render him unemployable. The Board grants a TDIU.

The Veteran's appeal is granted for increased ratings in various areas, including coronary artery disease and diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The reduction of the rating for left upper extremity diabetic peripheral neuropathy from 10 percent to noncompensable was found proper.

The Board finds that the Veteran's current diagnoses of lower extremity peripheral neuropathy have not been linked to his active service, specifically including any cold injury sustained during such service. The preponderance of evidence is against the claim for bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities is related to his service, specifically due to exposure to herbicide agents during his active duty in Vietnam.

The Veteran was granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, bilateral lower and upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, the cause of death (endstage Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and diabetes mellitus), and bilateral hearing loss due to in-service herbicide exposure.,Service connection is also granted for hypertension as secondary to diabetes mellitus.

The Veteran's deviated septum disability has been rated at a 10% rating since March 30, 2016. Prior to that date, the Veteran was not granted any compensation for this condition.

The Board has determined that there is no current evidence of peripheral neuropathy in the Veteran's upper and lower extremities.,As such, service connection for these conditions cannot be established.