Scars decisions — 2015

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and opinions regarding his service-connected disabilities, specifically their impact on his ability to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his residual scar, right ring finger was denied. The current evaluation of 10 percent is maintained.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated VA treatment records and scheduling a VA examination. The claims will be readjudicated after the additional development.

The Veteran's appeal is denied as his appendectomy scar does not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 10 percent.

The Veteran's service-connected head injury residuals do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss has been withdrawn. The case is being remanded to obtain additional medical records and to schedule the Veteran for a VA examination to assess his service-connected corneal scarring of both eyes.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for examinations to assess his service-connected right hand disability and spontaneous left pneumothorax.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for her TMJ and PTSD, but granted service connection for status-post sebaceous cyst scars of the back and residual scar of the right upper arm status-post rupture sebaceous cyst. The initial noncompensable evaluations assigned to these conditions are upheld.

The Board has remanded the case for further development to determine if the Veteran's current lung disability is related to his service-connected bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax and whether he was exposed to asbestos during service. The Veteran will be scheduled for a VA examination to assess the severity of his lung disabilities.

The Veteran's claim for an initial rating higher than 10 percent for the residuals of left ankle surgery has been granted, and he is now rated at 20 percent. Additionally, a separate 10 percent rating for a painful left ankle scar has also been granted.

The Veteran's service connection claims for a left arm scar and a respiratory disorder are granted. The claim for residuals of a left elbow injury is remanded.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to a scheduling error for a Board hearing. The issues of rating ratings, service connection, and effective date are still pending.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, when considered together, render him unemployable. The case is REMANDED for a comprehensive examination to determine the combined effect of his service-connected disabilities on his ability to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection were granted, with the effective date for the scar above the left eye set at August 21, 1990, and the effective date for napalm burns of the right forearm set at May 8, 2008.

The Veteran's right knee disability is being remanded for further examination and development due to the inadequacy of the previous VA examination.

The Board has remanded the case due to issues related to the Veteran's intervertebral disc syndrome and lumbar radiculopathy, including a request for a videoconference hearing that was not conducted.

The Veteran's combined rating of 70 percent for service-connected disabilities from June 1, 2004 to March 10, 2005 and 90 percent thereafter meets the threshold requirements for a TDIU. The appeal is granted.

The Board has determined that service connection is not warranted for decreased grip strength of the left hand or thumb due to a laceration injury, as there is no evidence of any current disability and the Veteran's subjective complaints do not correlate with objective examination findings.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to assess the extent and severity of his service-connected right knee disability.

The Veteran's right knee scar, which was painful and superficial prior to December 30, 2008, is rated at 10 percent effective from that date.