Sinusitis decisions — 2024

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for anxiety, insomnia, and depression is dismissed. The Board finds that the Veteran has a current diagnosis of reoccurring acute sinusitis due to his in-service exposure to particulate matter during his active service. Service connection is granted for this condition. Other claims are denied.

The Board has restored the Veteran's previously assigned disability ratings for urinary incontinence and sinusitis, effective July 1, 2020, as the reductions were not proper.

Service connection for bilateral tinnitus is granted.,Service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to service-connected sinusitis is granted.,The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss remains pending and will be remanded.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient opinions regarding service connection for sleep apnea, specifically whether it is related to active service or secondary to service-connected sinusitis.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed because he filed a Decision Review Request: Higher-Level Review while his request for HLR on the January 2024 rating decision was still pending.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bronchitis, COPD, and sinusitis due to a lack of VA examinations in support of these claims.

The Board has remanded the claims for prostate condition, hypertension, chronic headaches, ED, GERD, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, skin condition (melanoma of neck and face), back disability, left ankle injury, right ankle disability, and right shoulder disability due to a duty to assist error.,The Veteran's service connection claims are remanded as the Board finds that VA examinations and medical opinions are required to determine whether these claimed disabilities are etiologically related to his active service or other service-connected conditions.

The Veteran's claims for psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, and scoliosis are being remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations to address the nature and etiology of these conditions.

The Board has remanded the claim for service connection for a respiratory condition, including chronic sinusitis and rhinitis, due to a lack of a VA examination prior to the decision. The Veteran's current diagnoses include sinus issues that he contends were caused by military service.

The Board has granted an initial 30 percent disability rating for the service-connected sinusitis, effective from September 14, 2021. The Veteran's condition is characterized by more than six non-incapacitating episodes per year of sinusitis with headaches, pain, and purulent discharge or crusting.

The Board has determined that the AOJ did not properly consider whether obesity was an intermediate step in the Veteran's development of obstructive sleep apnea. Therefore, the case is being remanded to obtain a new medical opinion.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for the VA to obtain his treatment records from an urgent care visit in 2019 related to his sinusitis. The initial compensable evaluation claim for service-connected sinusitis and the claim for a higher rating for prostatitis prior to November 3, 2020 are both being remanded.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of an examination for sinusitis, which is considered a pre-decisional duty to assist error.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and chronic sinusitis, finding that the Veteran's symptoms began during service and have persisted since then. The claims were reopened due to new evidence received after the initial denial.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection of chronic sinusitis and allergic rhinitis due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology. The Veteran's conditions are related to his service-connected glottis cancer residuals, but further examination is needed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current hemorrhoid condition for VA purposes and therefore denied his claim. The claims for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.

The Veteran's death was attributed to myocardial infarction and cardiac insufficiency. The VA examiner opined that the service-connected conditions did not contribute substantially or materially to his death, but there is a need for an adequate medical opinion regarding the cause of death.

The Veteran's service-connected restless leg syndrome is granted, as it is at least as likely as not related to service.,The Veteran's sinusitis symptoms are rated at 30 percent due to more than six non-incapacitating episodes per year of sinusitis characterized by headaches, pain, and purulent discharge or crusting.

The Board has decided to remand the claim of service connection for sleep apnea as secondary to allergic rhinitis and/or chronic sinusitis due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's service-connected allergic rhinitis and/or chronic sinusitis is found to have caused or aggravated his current disability, but the VA examiner's opinion was inadequate.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and allergic rhinitis/sinusitis as secondary to bronchial asthma have been dismissed. The claim for a rating in excess of 30 percent for bronchial asthma is remanded.