The Veteran's headaches are found to be secondary to his service-connected hypertension.,Service connection is granted for costochondritis, as it is considered secondary to the Veteran's coronary artery disease.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner provided a medical opinion that the Veteran’s current costochondritis is likely related to his postoperative status following open heart surgery in 1997, which is considered secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep apnea, high cholesterol (residuals of amputation), right toe condition, kidney condition, headaches, costochondritis, diabetes mellitus, diabetic peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper extremities, diabetic complications of peripheral neuropathy and vascular disease of the bilateral lower extremities
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- June 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19150375
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease, and no competent evidence linking the condition to service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
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