Shoulder decisions — 2006

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral ankle and right shoulder disabilities, as well as COPD. The evidence did not support a finding of current disability or a nexus to service.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a current disability of his left shoulder or sinusitis, and thus cannot establish service connection for these conditions. The right shoulder disorder is also denied as there is no evidence of chronic disability during service.

The Board found no evidence of a right shoulder, head injury residuals, eye disabilities (specifically dry eye syndrome and left eye cataract), or left knee disability that were incurred during service. The veteran's current conditions are not presumed to have been incurred due to exposure to certain hazards.

The Board has denied service connection for a mood disorder and depression, as well as degenerative joint disease of the left shoulder. The veteran's claims were based on his Persian Gulf War service but there is no evidence linking these conditions to military service.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional notice and development, including consideration of an extraschedular rating for his left shoulder disability.

The Board has granted a 30 percent rating for Pseudofolliculitis Barbae (PFB), effective from the date of receipt of the claim, based on constant itching and scattered tender exposed papules in the beard area.

The Board found no etiological link between the veteran's service-connected lumbar disability and his claimed disabilities of the shoulders, knuckles, ankles, wrists, or cervical spine. Therefore, the claims for service connection were denied.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence to support the veteran's claims for service connection for a cervical spine condition and left shoulder disability, including as secondary to PTSD. The preponderance of the evidence does not establish a link between any current disabilities and service.

The veteran's claim for a higher rating and earlier effective date for service connection were denied. The veteran is currently rated at 20% for his right shoulder muscle disability, but the Board found that this was the maximum rating allowed under VA regulations. For the earlier effective date claims, the Board determined that the earliest possible effective date was October 28, 2002.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for scheduling a Travel Board Hearing. The case will be returned to the Board after this hearing.

The VA denied the veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 due to a right shoulder disability, finding that there was no additional disability caused by VA treatment.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient VCAA notice and will provide additional information before deciding whether new evidence supports reopening the claim of service connection for a right shoulder disorder.

The veteran's appeal for higher disability ratings for various service-connected conditions was denied. The RO found that the evidence did not support a higher rating than what had been assigned.

The Board denied the veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral defective hearing, a right shoulder disability, diabetes mellitus due to herbicide exposure, congestive heart failure secondary to diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. The decision found that his pre-existing conditions did not worsen during service or were not related to any in-service events.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations and service connection, finding that he does not have residuals of a left leg injury or a seizure disorder. The claim for service connection for right shoulder and arm disorder was remanded to the RO. The claim for service connection for bilateral foot infection/fungus was also remanded. The claim for an evaluation in excess of 20 percent for spondylolisthesis at L5-S1, status post laminectomy and fusion is granted.

The VA has determined that the veteran's current disabilities of the shoulders and arms were not incurred in or aggravated by active service, nor are they directly related to his military service.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional medical records and conduct a VA examination to assess the severity of his left shoulder disability, which includes traumatic arthritis with recurrent dislocation. The case will be re-adjudicated after these actions.

The Board found that the veteran's hand, arm, and left shoulder disorder is not related to service or Agent Orange exposure. The right foot and toes disorder are associated with his service-connected low back disability.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his service-connected conditions, including hypertensive arteriosclerotic heart disease, degenerative joint disease of the lumbosacral spine, arthritis of the right shoulder, maxillary sinusitis, and right inguinal hernia. The assigned disability ratings were not higher than what was currently in effect.

The Board found that the veteran's left shoulder disability, which is currently rated at 20 percent, does not warrant a higher rating as his range of motion did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.