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Chronic Epididymitis ..VA is very vague in regards to what meets SC ratings
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StretchBones
After doing some research yesterday I found out that Chronic Epididymitis is a disability that can be rated at either 30% or 10% as a Urinary Tract Infection. Here are the requirements for these SC ratings:
The ratings: A 30% rating is given if the condition causes regular infections that require hospitalization 3 or more times a year, or if it requires serious continuous treatment. A 10% rating is given if the condition requires regular drug therapy, 1 or 2 hospitalizations a year, or if it requires serious continuous treatment.
This is pretty vague in my opinion. I am just wondering, if a veteran is not hospitalized at all, but their chronic epididymitis does require serious continuous treatment, then wouldn't they be meeting the minimum requirements for both the 30% and 10% rating? Also, it would be really nice to know what is being considered "serious continuous treatment". I also think that in this case it is very vague to not be more specific about the "regular drug therapy" that this condition would require in order to meet the 10% rating.
I took the following information from the National Institutes of Health website concerning Chronic Epididymitis:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1553215/
"Medical treatment regimens for patients with chronic epididymitis are essentially nonexistent. Published studies examining other potential treatment modalities are also sparse and usually describe surgical outcomes (epididymectomy) in these patients. The most common previous therapies recollected by the patients in our published case-control study2 were antibiotics (74%), anti-inflammatory agents (36%), phytotherapy (16%), anxiolytics (12%), narcotic analgesics (10%), acupuncture (8%), and injection therapy (steroid or anesthetic) (6%). At the time of the survey, about one fourth (26%) of the patients were taking some type of pain medication."
Also interestingly enough, the NIH document about the illness also states "The only epidemiologic information that we could find was from a study published in 1966, in which epididymitis was determined to be the most common disease for which patients were admitted to the urology service at most army medical institutions".
When it comes to my own Chronic Epididymitis I actually have two Army LODs (Line of Duty Injury Statements) for Epididymitis. One is a complete LOD Investigation Packet that was compiled when I was on ADT Orders with the National Guard in 2009 and NOT on Active Duty. The second LOD is only the DA Form 2173, signed but not completely finished and with no attached Investigation Packet. This form was signed while in Iraq and on Active Duty in 2010, however. I do have medical records from civilian providers who were treating me while on ADSW orders for the National Guard in 2008, including radiology that shows epididymal cysts and a bilatral hydrocele. These records also show that I was treated with NSAIDs, narcotic pain meds, and antibiotics. I have a portion of my medical records from Iraq showing that I was treated with the same medications as the year before and that I was having urinalysis tests which were commonly positive for much larger quantities of blood and nitrites than is normal. Then in 2010 the VA also diagnosed me with Epididymitis and conducted its own imaging with also confirmed the epididymal cysts. The VA prescribed me the same trio of meds for this condition as well. I didn't use the VA for treatment for 2 years while I was back on Active Duty, but when I did return I had "Discharge from Penis" added to my VA problem list and after an STD test came up negative I was prescribed antibiotics again. That was two years ago. I haven't been treated with antibiotics since then. This isn't to say that I haven't had any pain and discomfort out of my chronic epididymitis, but honestly, I haven't sought new treatment for it other than the pain/NSAIDs that I take daily (for this and like 5 other physical ailments).
So I know that I can prove Service Connection without a doubt. I am thinking about filing a claim for this, but I have a feeling that I would likely get denied the 10% rating at the time. I do take NSAIDs and pain medication but I have a feeling that those alone wouldn't constitute "regular drug therapy". I noticed on the DBQ that it asks for all the treatments and medications taken over the past 12 months, so I am assuming that at least 1-2 treatments with antibiotics in that period along with daily pain/NSAIDs might be enough to be considered regular drug therapy. But I really hate making assumptions.
Is there anyone here that can give me any advice on this? Or this there anyone here that has successfully gotten a rating for this disability? Thanks in advance!
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