Peripheral neuropathy Board decisions

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development and consideration of his claims, including a TBI examination and adjudication of the psychiatric disorder claim.

The Veteran's PTSD is rated at 30 percent, effective from August 25, 2010. The appeal for increased rating of PTSD was withdrawn.

The Board has determined that the current evidence of record is insufficient to determine whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities make him unemployable. The case is therefore being remanded for a VA social and industrial survey to assess his overall ability to work.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, when considered together, rendered him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment from July 15, 2010 to July 14, 2011.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims of service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities and hip disability (DJD) on a secondary basis to his service-connected diabetes mellitus type II.

The Veteran's service-connected peripheral neuropathy of the right lower extremity and left lower extremity are currently rated at 10 percent each. The Board has determined that a higher rating is warranted, effective March 18, 2013.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities preclude him from securing or following substantially gainful employment, beginning on April 4, 2001. A schedular total disability rating based upon individual unemployability is granted.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for cervical spine disability and service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities were denied. The Veteran was not granted any new or material evidence to reopen his claim for service connection for a neurological disorder of the right arm.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for PTSD, tinnitus, peripheral neuropathy of the right sciatic nerve, bilateral hearing loss, and a scar of the right posterior thigh associated with a gunshot wound are denied. The claim for service connection for a right ankle sprain is also denied.

The Board denied service connection for Type II diabetes mellitus and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral lower extremities, finding that new and material evidence had not been received to reopen these claims. The Veteran's left ear disability claim was also addressed but found final due to a prior denial.

The Board found that the evidence did not support a finding of service connection for peripheral neuropathy, as there was no in-service diagnosis or treatment and no competent medical evidence linking the condition to active duty.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), finding that these conditions did not manifest during or as a result of active military service. The claim for service connection related to radiation exposure was also denied, with no evidence linking any current disabilities to such exposure.

The Veteran's post-operative left forearm malignant melanoma with painful and adherent scar (also claimed as sunburn) was not manifested in service, and a preponderance of the evidence is against finding it is related to service or caused by service.,The Veteran's bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy was not manifested in service, and a preponderance of the evidence is against finding it is related to service or caused by service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions, including asthma, lip cancer, cervical spine disability, generalized arthritis, right shoulder disability, left shoulder disability, peripheral neuropathy of the upper extremities, and sinus disability. The reasons given were that there was no evidence linking these conditions to active duty service.

The Veteran's currently diagnosed peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities is causally related to his service-connected bilateral pes planus, and the Board grants service connection for this condition as secondary to the service-connected bilateral pes planus.

The Board has determined that further development is needed for the Veteran's service connection claim for peripheral neuropathy, including as due to herbicide exposure. The case is REMANDED for a VA examination and consideration of the evidence.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of bilateral upper extremity neuropathy and therefore, service connection cannot be granted for this condition.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for scheduling a hearing before a Veterans Law Judge at his local RO. The issues on appeal include service connection for various conditions secondary to type 2 diabetes mellitus.

The Board granted service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity and remanded the remaining issues. The Veteran's claims for peripheral neuropathy of the left upper extremity, cervical spine disability, and acquired psychological disorder (other than PTSD) as secondary to service-connected lumbosacral strain were all granted.