COPD — all decisions

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions and additional development is required, including obtaining an addendum opinion regarding the Veteran's cause of death and whether his conditions were related to service in Vietnam.

The Veteran's COPD is granted as service-connected due to in-service exposure to particulate matter pollution, and the Board finds that this exposure caused his current condition.

The Board denied service connection for COPD, finding that the Veteran's current condition is not related to his in-service herbicide exposure and there is no medical nexus between his service and his current COPD.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for tinnitus, COPD, asthma, and allergies due to inadequate VA examination opinions. The Veteran's service connection claims will be reconsidered with new evidence.

Service connection for COPD is denied.,Entitlement to an evaluation higher than 60 percent for coronary artery disease post CABG is dismissed.,Entitlement to a compensable evaluation for scar, post CABG is dismissed.,Entitlement to an evaluation higher than 20 percent for bilateral hearing loss is dismissed.,The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for sleep apnea.

The Board has granted service connection for COPD, but the claim for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD is remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.

The Veteran's service connection for COPD is granted, but the claims for hypertension and atrial fibrillation are remanded due to a duty-to-assist error.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD with drug abuse is found to be the primary cause of his COPD. The appeal for secondary service connection for COPD is granted.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a respiratory disorder, including COPD, is remanded due to the need for a VA examination and additional private treatment records.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient opinions regarding the Veteran's COPD and its relation to service, as well as secondary service connection for myocardial infarction with congestive heart failure. The VA is required to obtain additional medical records and provide a new opinion on the issues raised.

The Board has granted an effective date of June 21, 2022 for a 100% rating for COPD with chronic bronchitis and hypoxemic respiratory failure. The decision is based on the fact that the Veteran's condition worsened to the point where he required outpatient oxygen therapy as of this date.

The Veteran's COPD is presumed to be related to his service due to exposure as an Air Policeman, but the VA examiner found it less likely than not caused by herbicides. The Board has ordered a remand for a TERA-specific VA medical opinion regarding whether the COPD is related to service, including the Veteran's exposure to jet fumes.

The Board remands the issue of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death to obtain additional evidence, specifically non-VA treatment records and an addendum opinion from a VA oncologist.

The Veteran's chronic bronchitis with COPD and early emphysema caused his sleep apnea, which is granted as secondary to the service-connected condition.

The Veteran is granted a higher rate of special monthly compensation (SMC) at the r-1 level due to needing regular aid and attendance for two separate service-connected disabilities: PTSD and COPD.

The Board has remanded the case due to a failure to obtain Social Security Administration (SSA) records that may be relevant to the Veteran's claim for service connection of COPD.

The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to missing VA treatment records stored in the VistA Imaging system.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD is remanded due to a duty to assist error. The Board will reconsider the claim de novo, including consideration of all submitted evidence.

The Veteran's claim for earlier effective date for service connection for asthma and COPD was denied as there is no evidence of an informal or formal claim prior to August 5, 2021. The liberalizing regulation that added a presumption of service connection for Gulf War exposure did not apply retroactively.

The Veteran's radiculopathy of the right lower extremity (posterior tibial nerve) and neuropathy of the right lower extremity (internal saphenous nerve) have not met the criteria for increased ratings. The right foot contusion injury residuals are rated at 20 percent, but there is no evidence of severe to complete paralysis or marked muscular atrophy.,The Veteran's COPD has not more nearly approximated forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV-1) of 56- to 70-percent predicted, or FEV-1/Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) of 56 to 70 percent, or DLCO (SB) 56- to 65-percent predicted.