Peripheral neuropathy decisions — 2024

Your appeal has been dismissed because the March 15, 2021 VBA letter rejecting your request for Higher-Level Review is not an appealable decision.

The Veteran's appeal for a rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity sciatic peripheral neuropathy prior to October 27, 2022 has been dismissed.,Effective dates have been granted for service connection of left and right lower extremity femoral radiculopathy from February 28, 2017.

The Board denied service connection for left upper extremity diabetic neuropathy, bilateral hearing loss, and kidney disability due to lack of a current diagnosis and no causal relationship between the disabilities and service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to inadequate VA examination and failure to associate medical records with the claims file. The Veteran is seeking increased ratings for his service-connected right elbow fracture, as well as service connection for neuropathy of the right upper extremity.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied except for the RUE diabetic neuropathy, which was granted a 40 percent rating effective from July 25, 2019. The LLE diabetic neuropathy claim is also granted with a 40 percent rating since January 20, 2020.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection have been denied. The Board found no evidence of CTS, tinnitus, or neuropathy in the record, and the Veteran's knee and spine disabilities are rated at their maximum allowable levels.

The Veteran's claims for sinusitis, bilateral hearing loss, ulnar neuropathy with loss of muscle right upper extremity, GERD, headaches, cervical strain with arthritis, and loss of balance were denied effective dates earlier than January 19, 2011, December 3, 2012, and June 19, 2014 respectively.,There is no evidence of formal or informal claims before these dates for the respective issues.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy did not begin during service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease. The claim for service connection is denied.

The Board has identified errors in the prior decision and has ordered remand for further investigation into the Veteran's claimed service exposure to herbicide agents, particularly during his TDY assignments in Vietnam. The issues of diabetes mellitus type II, Parkinson's disease, hypertension, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, Meniere's disease, aortic and vein disability, left lower diabetic peripheral neuropathy, right lower diabetic peripheral neuropathy, sleep apnea, and vertigo are all remanded for further review.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for left and right upper extremity neuropathy as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions.

The appeals seeking increased ratings for various service-connected conditions have been dismissed. A rating of 70 percent, but no higher, has been granted for PTSD effective from March 11, 2024.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for left lower extremity (LLE) neuropathy of the sciatic nerve was denied. Prior to July 5, 2019, the Veteran was not entitled to a rating in excess of 10 percent. From July 5, 2019, he was not entitled to a rating in excess of 20 percent.

The Veteran's sarcoidosis is caused by service, and he is granted service connection for this condition.,Service connection cannot be established for kidney disease as there is no evidence of its onset during or within one year following service. The Board finds the evidence does not support a finding that it was related to service.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for PTSD was denied.,The Board found that the evidence did not show total occupational and social impairment, thus a higher rating in excess of 70 percent is not warranted.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current ulcer and therefore, service connection for an ulcer is denied. The remaining issues on appeal are remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.

The Board has remanded the claims for cervical spine injury, left upper extremity neuropathy, and right upper extremity neuropathy secondary to cervical spine injury due to insufficient evidence in the record. The Veteran's private treatment records have not been obtained.

The Veteran's DMII is currently rated as 20 percent disabling, and the issues with his right and left lower extremity neuropathy are each rated at 10 percent.,The Board has determined that additional development is needed for the issues of increased ratings for DMII and both lower extremity neuropathies.

The Board is remanding the issues of whether the reduction in rating from 40 percent to 20 percent for diabetic peripheral neuropathy, sciatic nerve, right lower extremity and left lower extremity was proper. The issues are also being remanded due to their inextricability with the issue of entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).

The Veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus type II, bilateral upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, and bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy were denied effective January 14, 2022.,All related issues of entitlement to earlier effective dates have been denied.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently assigned a noncompensable rating, and the claim for a compensable evaluation is denied.,There is no evidence of a current left hip disability during or approximate to the period on appeal. The claim for service connection for a left hip condition is denied.,Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder with alcohol dependency is remanded as there was no specific assertion of PTSD and VA examination is needed to clarify the nature and etiology of the claimed psychiatric disorder, including whether it is secondary to or caused by a service-connected disability.,The Veteran's hypertension claim is remanded due to his assertion that it is secondary to an acquired psychiatric disorder. Service connection for diabetes mellitus (to include as secondary to hypertension) is also remanded based on the Veteran's assertion of its secondary relationship to hypertension.,Right and left lower extremity diabetic neuropathy are remanded as they are claimed to be secondary to diabetes mellitus, which is itself a claim that requires further development.,The Veteran's right and left lower extremity diabetic neuropathy claims are remanded based on the same reasoning as his diabetes mellitus claim.