Thyroid disorder decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and hypothyroidism due to insufficient medical opinions addressing whether these conditions are related to his service-connected disabilities, specifically his back disability. The Veteran is seeking secondary service connection based on obesity as an intermediate step.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, asthma (to include as secondary to OSA), and hypothyroidism with morbid obesity. The Board found that there was no evidence linking these conditions to service or service-connected disabilities.,The decision also noted that the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of asthma during service and his current asthma is believed to be related to post-service factors.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for thyroid disability, including residuals of Graves' disease, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his condition and service or exposure to herbicide agents.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a thyroid disorder is denied as the evidence does not show that his current diagnosis of hypothyroidism began during service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.,The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his low back and left shoulder conditions are also denied. The preponderance of the evidence shows no more than a 10 percent disability rating prior to January 15, 2020, and a 20 percent disability rating thereafter.

The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeals for various service connection and rating issues, including those related to sleep apnea, hypertension, hyperthyroidism, right knee patellofemoral syndrome, bilateral shin splints, right forearm condition (elbow limitation of flexion), right wrist sprain, migraine headaches, and sinusitis. The appeals were dismissed due to the Veteran's agreement with the RO's determinations on these issues.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claims for sleep apnea and hyperthyroidism, but has remanded his claims for GERD and restless leg syndrome due to insufficient evidence.

The Board has remanded the claims for thyroid condition, skin cancer residuals, and GERD due to insufficient opinions regarding service connection. The Veteran is seeking service connection based on exposure to tritium and chemicals used during service.

The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for hypothyroidism is denied as the evidence does not show any symptoms beyond requiring continuous control with thyroid-stimulating hormone supplement medications.

The Board denied service connection for a back disability, thyroid condition, obstructive sleep apnea, and GERD. The reasons given were that the evidence did not establish a nexus between these conditions and active service.,Service connection was not granted because there was no chronic disease shown during service or within presumptive periods, and continuity of symptomatology was not established.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and records.,Specifically, the Board is requesting that VA obtain relevant treatment records from various sources and schedule the Veteran for further examination.

The Veteran's service connection claim for hypothyroidism is granted due to exposure to herbicide agents during his Vietnam service, and the disease is now considered presumptively associated with such exposure.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for rheumatoid arthritis and chronic thyroiditis due to inadequate examinations conducted by physician assistants instead of requested specialists, and because the examinations did not adequately address whether the Veteran's symptoms during active service were early manifestations of her later diagnosed conditions.

The Board has remanded several issues related to service connection for various conditions, including eye disability (glaucoma), sleep apnea, colon polyps, GERD, hypothyroidism, restrictive lung disease, and adrenal gland tumor. The decision also notes that the Veteran is in receipt of Social Security Administration (SSA) disability benefits but has not provided relevant SSA records.

The Board has remanded the case for further development due to incomplete examination findings and other issues.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for hypertension, hip condition, vitamin D deficiency, anemia, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, skin condition (psoriasis and eczema), thyroid condition, and sleep apnea due to potential secondary relationships with other service-connected conditions or obesity.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA medical opinion regarding the Veteran's thyroid condition, including hypothyroidism. The new opinion is needed from an endocrinologist who should consider the dose estimates provided by the Naval Dosimetry Center and convert them appropriately.

The Board has granted service connection for Graves' disease and hypothyroidism as a result of in-service herbicide agent exposure, specifically Agent Orange.

The Board dismissed the appeal for thyroid cancer as the appellant requested withdrawal of the appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Board denied service connection for various musculoskeletal conditions, stomach condition, hypothyroidism, and acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran's claims were remanded for further development.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for prostate cancer, bilateral cataracts, and hypothyroidism due to ionizing radiation exposure during service. An additional VA opinion is needed to determine if these conditions are related to service.