Citation Nr: 21062978
Decision Date: 10/12/21	Archive Date: 10/12/21

DOCKET NO. 14-34 988A
DATE: October 12, 2021

ORDER

Service connection for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is granted.

FINDING OF FACT

The Veteran's IBS is aggravated by medication used to treat his service-connected groin pain.

CONCLUSION OF LAW

The criteria to establish service connection for IBS have been met.  38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107 (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.310(a).

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION

The Veteran had active service from July 1985 to August 1985.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a February 2013 rating decision by the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ).  

The Veteran seeks service connection for IBS.  To establish a right to compensation for a present disability, a Veteran must show: "(1) the existence of a present disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service"-the so-called "nexus" requirement.  Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004).

Service connection may also be granted for disability which is proximately due to or the result of a service-connected disease or injury.  38 C.F.R. § 3.310 (a).  This includes any increase in disability (aggravation) that is proximately due to or the result of a service-connected disease or injury.  Establishing service connection on a secondary basis requires evidence sufficient to show (1) that a current disability exists and (2) that the current disability was either caused or aggravated by a service-connected disease or injury.  Allen v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 439 (1995) (en banc).

The record documents that the Veteran was prescribed narcotic pain medication for pain caused by conditions including his service-connected penile deformity and groin pain as early as 2000, and that he was also prescribed medication as needed for constipation.  See November 2000 VA treatment record.  Since then, he has been prescribed various narcotic pain medications and medication for constipation.  In April 2005, a VA provider noted that the Veteran used Vicodin for severe symptoms, which tended to cause constipation.  

In June 2019, a VA examiner noted that the Veteran's records indicated that his constipation, a symptom of irritable bowel syndrome, was due to his pain medications.  

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Having reviewed the record with respect to this issue, the Board concludes that service connection for the Veteran's IBS is warranted.  In this regard, a VA provider and a VA examiner have indicated that the Veteran's IBS is aggravated by medications prescribed for his service-connected disabilities.  These statements were made by medical providers who considered the Veteran's history and the record.  As there are informed medical opinions indicating that the Veteran's IBS is related to his service-connected groin pain, the Board concludes that service connection is in order.

 

 

DONNIE R. HACHEY

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	J. Barone, Counsel

The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.