Scars decisions — 2019

The Board denied the Veteran's request for reentrance into the VA vocational rehabilitation and employment program, finding that his service-connected disabilities have not worsened to the extent that he is precluded from performing work duties or that the occupation previously found rehabilitated is unsuitable.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional examinations and evaluations to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed left index finger disability, right hand and forearm disabilities, and peripheral nerve conditions. The TDIU claim is also being remanded.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for acne with residual scars is remanded due to the need for additional examinations and consideration.

The Veteran's PTSD is rated at 50 percent, and his gastric adenocarcinoma and residual scar from gastric surgery are both granted service connection based on in-service herbicide agent exposure.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claim for specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grant is remanded due to a duty-to-assist error. The Veteran needs an examination to assess his service-connected disabilities and their impact on his ability to use aids such as braces, crutches, canes or a wheelchair.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a scar of the head, face or neck and an increased rating in excess of 30 percent for his postoperative pterygium of the left eye. The evidence did not support the presence of separate disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case due to a duty to assist error in the February 2019 medical opinion, which did not address the significance of the Veteran's treatment for a foreign body in his left eye and the presence of a black spot on his eye.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for various metastatic cancers and related conditions due to the death of the Veteran.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals regarding the increased ratings for both linear and deep scar, as well as circular scar.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, headache disorder, right trigeminal neuralgia, tinnitus, disfiguring and painful facial scars, and traumatic brain injury residuals, have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment. As a result, the Board has granted TDIU for the entire period on appeal.

The Veteran's claims for clothing allowances related to knee braces, a manual wheelchair, diabetic shoes and inserts, and topical medication were denied. The decision grants payment of a clothing allowance for bilateral knee braces used due to service-connected disabilities that wore out his clothing in 2017.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings for left lower extremity radiculopathy and disfiguring scars, residuals of back surgery have been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal.

The Veteran's appeals for increased ratings were denied. The Board found that the current 10 percent disability rating for residuals of a left foot overuse injury with tendonitis, and seasonal rhinitis are appropriate. However, the appeal for a compensable disability rating for residuals of an excisional biopsy with residual stable scar on the left shoulder is remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected painful scars, left thumb, posterior trunk (back), and neck were granted a 20 percent rating from February 1, 2012, to February 16, 2019. From February 17, 2019, the Veteran was denied a higher rating for these conditions. The Veteran's neck scar with characteristic of disfigurement received a 10 percent initial rating from February 1, 2012, to February 16, 2019 and was denied a higher rating thereafter.

The Veteran's right wrist scar is painful and has been rated at 10 percent throughout the period of this claim.

The Board has granted service connection for a right thigh scar but has remanded the issue of service connection for neuropathy, as it is unclear whether the Veteran's current condition is related to his in-service injury.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to engage and retain substantially gainful employment, resulting in a grant of TDIU.

The Veteran's service-connected surgical scars of the left and right great toes have been rated as non-compensable, and a rating in excess of 10 percent for painful scars has also been denied.,A rating in excess of 10 percent for the service-connected right hallux valgus post-operative bunionectomy and delayed union is not warranted based on current evidence.,The Veteran's service-connected bilateral plantar fasciitis has a maximum assigned rating of 50 percent, which is the highest possible under Diagnostic Code 5276. The Veteran does not meet criteria for higher ratings as his symptoms do not warrant such an evaluation.,No effective date prior to September 17, 2017 was granted for the increased evaluation of 50 percent for bilateral plantar fasciitis.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to the need for additional evidence. The reduction of his back disability rating from 40% to 20% has also been reversed.