Peripheral neuropathy decisions — 2019

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD and peripheral neuropathy have rendered him unable to secure or maintain substantially gainful employment prior to June 7, 2018.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for eye disability, diabetes mellitus, and bilateral upper extremity peripheral neuropathy due to potential herbicide exposure during service. Further development is required including obtaining medical opinions regarding the nature and causes of these disabilities.

The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability for the period from January 27, 2017 to December 5, 2018 due to service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for a right leg disability due to the finding that the additional disability was not caused by carelessness, negligence, lack of skill or similar incidence of fault on the part of the attending VA personnel.

The Board has remanded the cases due to inadequate VA examinations and a need for further medical opinions.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded to determine if he was exposed to herbicide agents in Vietnam, which would allow him to be presumed exposed and entitled to service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unemployable, as he is capable of sedentary employment despite his diabetes and peripheral neuropathy.

The Board has reviewed new evidence submitted by the Veteran and finds that it should be considered in the first instance by the AOJ. The appeal is therefore remanded for this purpose.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including chronic lumbar strain with intervertebral disc disease, migraine headaches, and peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity, have prevented him from maintaining substantially gainful employment. The Board has granted a TDIU based on these conditions.

The Veteran's service connection claims for peripheral neuropathy, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus have been granted. The decision also denied the Veteran's service connection claims for left lower extremity and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development regarding his claims of service connection for various conditions, including bilateral hearing loss, diabetes, diabetic retinopathy, diabetic neuropathy, hypertension, gastroesophageal disease (GERD), and sinusitis. The issues are inextricably intertwined with the issue of presumed exposure to herbicide agents during service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings have been granted. The cervical spine disability, bilateral upper extremity neuropathy, and radiculopathy of the lower extremities are all reopened. However, initial rating increases in excess of 10 percent prior to June 11, 2010, and in excess of 20 percent thereafter for radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities have been denied.

The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his left foot condition, coronary artery disease, diabetes mellitus, and peripheral neuropathy. The claims for increased ratings are also being remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including diabetes mellitus, peripheral neuropathy, hypercholesterolemia, erectile dysfunction, neurogenic bladder, hypertension, and bilateral eye disability. The decision found no evidence of herbicide exposure or actual exposure to Agent Orange during service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and are being remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations. The issues of entitlement to service connection for a skin disorder, sinusitis, respiratory disorders other than sinusitis (including COPD and bronchitis), and peripheral neuropathy will be further evaluated.

The appeal for service connection for peripheral neuropathy, right lower extremity is dismissed. The issues of service connection for sleep apnea and hypertension are remanded.

The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 is remanded due to the need for a medical opinion regarding whether complications arose during his June 2012 treatment at the VA and if these complications are related to the care provided.

The Veteran's diabetes mellitus type II is rated at 40 percent from April 12, 2016. His diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the left and right lower extremities are each rated at 10 percent.

The Board denied service connection for right shoulder degenerative changes, hypertension, peripheral neuropathy of the left lower extremity, and right leg sciatic condition and peripheral neuropathy (claimed as right leg nerve damage) due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to active military service.,Agent Orange exposure is conceded, but there is no evidence that peripheral neuropathy was diagnosed within one year after discharge from service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for peripheral neuropathy in the right upper and lower extremities as secondary to his service-connected diabetes mellitus type II due to new evidence received after the last decision.