diabetes Mom Needs Help

[bookhart 1]

my father died april 08 he was 100% dv my father had leg fracture and total knee replacement he could not get around at all and had diabetes, he developed heart problems and kidney falure i need to prove his service related injury the(leg) CAUSED his death please help

[jim n ok]

you will need all medical records,diagnosis,nexus letter from physicians. do bva search on home page to see how va responds to this claim.also a lawyer would not hurt. if he was 100 percent,what do you hope to gain at this point? berta is very experienced in this type claim.

[Berta]

I think this post was answered somewhere else-

Sharon asked how long he was getting the 100% comp rate and I asked if he had been a Vietnam Veteran (incountry)

100% SC for ten continuous years establishes DIC under 38 USC 1318.

Sometimes a survivor can prove a "hypothetical" entitlement to DIC under the ten year rule- by proving with medical evidence that the VA should have rated the vet 100% SC for ten years prior to death.This is very difficult to do and the details of that type of claim are within 1318.

Newly discovered service records have been used to challenge DIC denials through the hypothetical entitlement theory.

As well as CUE claims on past denied or unlawful reduction claims ( affecting the continuous 100% P & T status)

However in this case-unless the vet was 100% for ten years preceding death or the DMII and complications that caused death were from proven exposure to Agent Orange-

it would be difficult to associate the leg disability with what is on the death certificate.

A SC disability does not have to directly cause death but if listed as a contributing factor to death, then the VA should award DIC.

Only an independent medical opinion could possibly prove there was a nexus between this veteran's death and his SC condition.

It is possible that his inactivity due to SC knee problems caused him to develop hyperlipedimia ,lack of exercise and diet problems and other conditions that are consistent with diabetes.

But only a medical opinion that spells this out clearly would possibly help to award DIC unless he had the 100% in affect for ten years (or the widow could prove his rating should have been 100%)

If the widow considers getting a medical opinion, the opinion might be quite costly but it could cover the ten year potential as well as direct SC death due to SC contributing.

An independent physician should have copies of the SMRS , and all medical records as well as the Death Certificate.

Was an autopsy done?

Autopsies can often reveal more details that can add to direct service connection of death.

[bookhart 1]

I think this post was answered somewhere else-

Sharon asked how long he was getting the 100% comp rate and I asked if he had been a Vietnam Veteran (incountry)

100% SC for ten continuous years establishes DIC under 38 USC 1318.

Sometimes a survivor can prove a "hypothetical" entitlement to DIC under the ten year rule- by proving with medical evidence that the VA should have rated the vet 100% SC for ten years prior to death.This is very difficult to do and the details of that type of claim are within 1318.

Newly discovered service records have been used to challenge DIC denials through the hypothetical entitlement theory.

As well as CUE claims on past denied or unlawful reduction claims ( affecting the continuous 100% P & T status)

However in this case-unless the vet was 100% for ten years preceding death or the DMII and complications that caused death were from proven exposure to Agent Orange-

it would be difficult to associate the leg disability with what is on the death certificate.

A SC disability does not have to directly cause death but if listed as a contributing factor to death, then the VA should award DIC.

Only an independent medical opinion could possibly prove there was a nexus between this veteran's death and his SC condition.

It is possible that his inactivity due to SC knee problems caused him to develop hyperlipedimia ,lack of exercise and diet problems and other conditions that are consistent with diabetes.

But only a medical opinion that spells this out clearly would possibly help to award DIC unless he had the 100% in affect for ten years (or the widow could prove his rating should have been 100%)

If the widow considers getting a medical opinion, the opinion might be quite costly but it could cover the ten year potential as well as direct SC death due to SC contributing.

An independent physician should have copies of the SMRS , and all medical records as well as the Death Certificate.

Was an autopsy done?

Autopsies can often reveal more details that can add to direct service connection of death.

my mom really needs this income i am prepared to get an independent doctor to tie the diabetes to his death .now if he had diabetes at the same time he was getting rated 100% can i say they should have included the diabetes when the rated him.he became 100% oct 04 and can you refer us to an lawyer and a doctor who can handle the nexus and can i go back and get the dc to include his leg problems

[Commander Bob]

How many years was he service connected 100%? What happened??? Did your mom get DIC?

[deltaj]

my father died april 08 he was 100% dv my father had leg fracture and total knee replacement he could not get around at all and had diabetes, he developed heart problems and kidney falure i need to prove his service related injury the(leg) CAUSED his death please help

First get a copy of your dad's death certificate listing his cause of death. What service connected conditions was your dad rated for at the time of death? You mentioned diabetes as one condition he had. Was he a Vietnam veteran? (Diabetes is presumptive for Vietnam veterans because of exposure to herbicides like Agent Orange.) Was your dad's leg fracture and knee replacement due to service connected conditions? If you could get a medical opinion linking his cause of death to his service connected leg injury you could win. I think you might have to have a new claim filed for DIC on behalf of survivors but I'm not sure. Maybe his leg injury cuased the heart disease or diabetes that eventually killed him. What I'm wondering about is whether V.A. had any diagnosis in the file of traumatic arthrtis secondary to his service connected leg condition at the time an earlier claim for TDIU was pending. If so that would be an inferred claim for that condition. Are there any prior denials of unemployability in his V.A. file? If he had been rated 100% for 10 years or more at time of death his widow would be entitled under 38 U.S.C. 1318. How long was he rated 100%? Sometimes V.A. overlooks entitlement to an earlier 100% rating under 38 CFR 3.400 (o) (2) and 38 CFR (q). I recommend you write V.A. immediately and request a copy of your dad's V.A. claims folder.

[deltaj]

my father died april 08 he was 100% dv my father had leg fracture and total knee replacement he could not get around at all and had diabetes, he developed heart problems and kidney falure i need to prove his service related injury the(leg) CAUSED his death please help

Look into the medical aspect of whether he developed thrombus (a blood clot) or thrombophlebitis which caused a blood clot which resulted in his death. You might also be able to get one of his doctors to render some sort of medical opinion that inactivity from his service connected disability caused or worsened his heart disease, diabetes, and or/kidney problems and that resulted in his death. That would be the sort of medical evidence in support of a pending claim for DIC that V.A. would consider. Also there is DIC available for survivors of a veteran who is rated 100% SC for 10 years or more. Also were there any periods of time where DAV erroneously reduced his earlier 100% rating contrary to 38 CFR 3.343 or 38 CFR 3.344?

Edited September 30, 2009 by deltaj