Scars decisions — 2014

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining updated medical records and scheduling the Veteran for VA examinations to assess the severity of his burn scars.

The Veteran's claims are being remanded for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a more contemporaneous VA examination.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses is denied because the emergency room visit on July 11, 2010, did not meet the criteria for an emergency medical condition manifesting itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity.

The Veteran's total combined rating for service-connected disabilities is 90 percent, rendering him unable to obtain and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining additional VA treatment records and providing a new opinion regarding the Veteran's employability.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the issues have been dismissed.

The Veteran's current sinusitis can be reasonably disassociated from his active military service, but the Board finds that the evidence supports a finding of service connection for sinusitis. The claim is granted.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining service treatment records and VA treatment records. The Veteran's lung scarring is being evaluated to determine if it had its clinical onset during active service or is related to any in-service disease, event, or injury.

The Board has dismissed the claim of entitlement to TDIU and denied claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity, and coronary artery disease. The partial grant includes a compensable disability rating for a burn scar of the right thigh and initial increased ratings for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity and coronary artery disease.

The Veteran's claim of entitlement to an initial disability evaluation in excess of 30 percent for myasthenia gravis was granted, with a rating of 30 percent.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings and reopening of a previously denied claim were all denied as the current evaluations are deemed adequate.

The Veteran meets the schedular criteria for TDIU, with his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses incurred from October 6 to October 9, 2009 at St. Edward Mercy Medical Center were for emergency treatment due to a significant injury and could not be safely transferred to a VA facility until his condition stabilized on October 9, 2009.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including VA examinations and the submission of any relevant medical records. The issues on appeal are whether he should receive a higher rating for his left inguinal hernia surgery scar, an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, and service connection for a right knee disability.

The Board has granted service connection for moderate osteoarthritis of the right wrist and a residual scar from a laceration in the right hand. The claim for other disorders, including strain, is denied due to lack of medical nexus.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and adjudicating the TDIU claim. The issues of rating excess disability for left internal malleolus fracture and right knee osteoarthritis with scars are also pending.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for her left wrist fractures and scars were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating based on the number of painful or unstable scars.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection and TDIU were dismissed as they seek to establish an effective date in a manner not authorized by law.

The Veteran's service connection claims for hemorrhoids, left shoulder impingement syndrome, urinary incontinence, posterior fistulotomy, status post hemangioma liver with scars, diverticulitis, and retinaculum removal are all granted. The Veteran is assigned a noncompensable (0%) disability evaluation for her service-connected lipoma removal scar.

The Veteran's right ring finger disability and scars have been evaluated based on their current symptoms, which are already addressed by the existing rating criteria.,No additional compensable ratings can be assigned as the Veteran's disabilities are rated at maximum levels.