The Board granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II (DMII) as secondary to PTSD with substance use disorder, finding that the Veteran's DMII is aggravated beyond its natural progression by his service-connected PTSD and SUD.
The deciding factor: The November 2024 VA examiner indicated that excessive alcohol use, consistent with the Veteran's SUD, is known to cause diabetes complications because alcohol interferes with the release of glucose from the liver and can increase the risk of low blood sugar which is dangerous to a person who has diabetes and is already taking insulin or some other diabetes medications to lower blood sugar.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, type II (DMII)
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 12, 2025
- Citation
- 25002138
Want to see how appeals like this one tend to go? Appeals like mine
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