Any one have List of Secondary Conditions to Share??

[rootbeer22]

Folks:

 

Please let me know if there  is a list of secondary conditions out there that I can get a copy of. thanks Rootbeer22

[brokensoldier244th]

What are you alleging secondary to what? You can't just go down a list and pick stuff. If you have questions about particular conditions your doctor is probably a better resource. What is secondary for me is not going to be secondary for you, for example. 

 

[rootbeer22]

brokensoldier244th:

Certainly, I would use those that apply for my particular case but I've seen lists that folks have provided in the past. For instance, I have neck, back, cardiac and sleep apnea but the secondaries seen to be fairly complicated. I have a couple of secondaries that the VBA assigned after reviewing my case. But, I'm trying to learned if there are common secondaries for area like cardiac issues for kidneys.  Take Care, Rootbeer22

[pwrslm]

Secondary conditions are particular to the condition they are tied to.  If you have heart issues, lung problems come with it, as do edema and other circulatory issues.  If you have liver problems, a host of things can be affected.  Chemical exposure from AO had so many, the list is exhaustive.  Each individual condition has its own effect, Pancreas can be affected by the liver, kidney, chemical exposure and more.  Brain trauma can have another host of by product, not only mental but physical as well, just like spine injury.  Your neck specific can cause peripheral neuropathy of the arms, and hands, numbness in the legs can be cause by lumbar disc herniation's just like the neck causes the arms/hands.  Many people are affected by cervical and thoraco-lumbar conditions, secondary to them are the effects pinched nerves have on the peripheral limbs.  You can actually have your sciatic nerve paralyzed by the lumbar degeneration and get 80% disability for one leg.  Both legs are bilateral, so ratings can get pretty high for severe secondary conditions.  I've got Foot Drop and partial paralysis of the left leg from L4/5 and S1 problems.

Find the specific service connected condition and google them, causes, effects, treatment, see if you have any other condition tied to that, and go talk to a specialist about it.

 

Start with srs.org, and many colleges are tied to orthopedic and neurology sites for their .edu stuff with ton's of facts and reference for spine study and education that are tied to medical universities and hospitals.

Edited September 1, 2015 by pwrslm

[Vync]

Consider the side effects of medications prescribed to treat your SC conditions. If the side effects rise to 10% disabling, you can try to get them SC. Some meds, like opioids or psychotropics, cause problems with ED/libido and can lead to an SMC-K, but it does not factor into your combined rating. Opioids and NSAIDS can also cause digestive problems like GERD or constipation.

With SC neck/back issues, some veterans have higher occurrences of depression secondary to chronic pain.

 

[Berta]

Good advise above.

And as stated above ,secondaries are unique to each veteran and are determined solely by medical evidence and a strong nexus statement.

Diabetes ,for example has multiple possible secondaries.They are listed in the Diabetes Training letter here.

Around 2004 VA changed the original diabetes training letter which I had posted on the older hadit board years ago. It was dated 1997 and has so many more secondaries that it gave me considerable clues on proving my AO DMII claim.

But for that claim I got a real doctor and 3 IMos that gave full medical rationale for SC death due to DMII contributing.

VA will usually SC GERD without much hoopla if the veteran can prove they were prescribed NSAIDS by VA over a long period of time, because it is well known in the standard medical community of the medical nexus of NSAIDS to causing GERD.

But other secondaries depend on medical evidence, even if they seem obvious.

It took me years to get my deceased husband';s HBP awarded under 1151.With PTSD ,heart disease (IHD) and a major stroke, you would think that would be an obvious Nexus. They first denied in March 2015 ,claim filed in 2012) with a ridiculous medical opinion.They then reversed and awarded in April 2015 because I cued them immediately under 38 CFR 4,6 as they had failed to consider my evidence, one sole piece of evidence from the VACO Strategic Health team  dated 1997.The nexus in that document was as clear as a bell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[georgiapapa]

 

Rootbeer,

One way of finding conditions that are secondary to your medical conditions is through the BVA decisions search.  Go to the BVA Appeals website and click on the search decisions section.  In "the exact word or phrase" section, type in the words "secondary to (insert your medical condition)" and click on the block to search all years.  You should get hits on VA claims for conditions that were previously claimed as secondary to your medical condition.  In the claims that were successful, you may also find info on what evidence was used to support the claim for the secondary condition. 

GP

 

brokensoldier244th:

Certainly, I would use those that apply for my particular case but I've seen lists that folks have provided in the past. For instance, I have neck, back, cardiac and sleep apnea but the secondaries seen to be fairly complicated. I have a couple of secondaries that the VBA assigned after reviewing my case. But, I'm trying to learned if there are common secondaries for area like cardiac issues for kidneys.  Take Care, Rootbeer22