Scars decisions — 2008

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for hair loss and miscarriages of his wife, finding no new and material evidence to reopen these claims. The claim for sweating was also denied as there is no indication that it resulted from undiagnosed illness or a medically unexplained chronic multi-symptom illness.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for left ear hearing loss, tinnitus, and an increased rating for his right middle finger disability. The veteran's left ear hearing loss was not shown to have been aggravated by service, while his tinnitus and right middle finger disability were not found to be related to military service.

The Board has granted a 20% rating for the veteran's left shoulder disability as of October 11, 2007. The claim for a compensable rating for the scar on his left shoulder is denied. The claim for a compensable rating for inguinal hernia is also denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's sexual dysfunction, claimed as a residual of bilateral testicular trauma and status post left testicular exploration, is not related to service. However, the veteran does have surgical scars on his left scrotum which are considered residuals of the in-service left testicular exploration.

The veteran's left calf and right thigh scars are service-connected, but his arthritis is not. The PTSD claim remains at a 50% rating.

The Board has remanded the case due to a need for further search of service records, particularly those from the 29th AAA Battalion (AW) (SP) in Japan. The veteran seeks service connection for scars on his right leg that he claims are related to an in-service injury.

The veteran is seeking an earlier effective date for payment of additional compensation based on a dependent. The Board finds that the earliest possible effective date is August 1, 2005, as the claim was filed one year after this date.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a right ankle disability, which is secondary to his service-connected left knee instability with degenerative arthritis and scars, has been remanded due to the need for additional medical records.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further examination and evaluation of the veteran's disabilities, as well as a determination on whether he is unemployable due to nonservice-connected conditions.

The veteran's service-connected scars have been rated as 10 percent for the left leg and thigh, but his appeal is denied for increased ratings.

The veteran's diabetes mellitus is currently rated as 20 percent disabling, and the residual shell fragment wound scar is not compensably disabling. The Board finds that neither condition warrants a higher rating.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right shoulder and right arm scars, as well as service connection for a left ankle disorder, were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support an initial rating in excess of the currently assigned noncompensable ratings for these conditions.

The veteran's claims for higher initial evaluations of his service-connected right shoulder and right fibula disabilities were denied. The RO found that the right shoulder disability did not meet criteria for a rating in excess of 10 percent prior to January 30, 2008 or from January 30, 2008 onwards. For the exostosis right fibula, the RO also determined that it did not warrant a compensable rating prior to January 17, 2006 and a rating in excess of 10 percent thereafter.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for his shrapnel wound scar, right minor biceps. The evidence did not show any symptomatic scar.

The veteran's pseudofolliculitis barbae with scars had its onset in service and is considered a direct result of his military service. Toxic encephalopathy was not incurred or aggravated by service.

The Board found that the interruption and subsequent discontinuance of vocational rehabilitation benefits under Chapter 31 was proper due to unsatisfactory conduct and cooperation by the veteran.

The Board found that new and material evidence has not been presented to reopen the veteran's claims for service connection for coryza, bronchitis and bronchopneumonia, ascaris infection, right costo-vertebral condition, and right shoulder disability. The claims were denied.

The veteran's left wrist scar is rated at 10 percent, the highest possible under Diagnostic Code 7804. The rating for his left wrist fracture residuals remains at 20 percent.

The veteran's appeals for higher initial ratings for his service-connected GERD, testalgia, residuals of a right inguinal hernia repair with scar, and recurrent dislocation of the left index finger have been denied. The RO found that these conditions do not warrant ratings greater than 10 percent.

The VA has denied the veteran's claim for an increased initial rating for his service-connected scars, residuals of surgery, left foot. The current evaluation is already at the maximum schedular rating available under Diagnostic Code (DC) 7804.