Shoulder decisions — 2006

The Board found that the veteran's cause of death was not caused or contributed substantially to by any service-connected disability, and denied both claims for service connection for the cause of death and DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his left shoulder condition, recurrent right ankle sprain, and residuals from a left hand crush injury. The conditions were found to not warrant higher disability ratings under applicable diagnostic codes.

The Board found no current skin disorder, to include toenail fungus, and denied service connection for this condition. The veteran's hepatitis C was diagnosed in 2002 at VA, but the RO must obtain all relevant medical records before adjudicating his claim. Regarding the left shoulder disorder, the examiner should determine if it is related to an injury sustained during service.

The veteran's claim for an earlier effective date prior to July 27, 2001 for service connection of his right shoulder disability was denied by the Board. The RO granted service connection based on a reopened claim but used a different effective date than requested.

The Board finds that the preponderance of evidence is against the veteran's claim for service connection for a left shoulder disability, as there is no medical evidence linking any injury during service to his current condition.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased disability rating and TDIU, but granted an effective date of September 20, 2000 for a 40 percent evaluation for his service-connected low back strain.

The VA has denied an increased evaluation for the veteran's shell fragment wounds of the right shoulder and chest wall, finding that they do not meet criteria for a compensable rating.

The veteran's appeal has been withdrawn due to his request for withdrawal of the appeal.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for duodenal ulcer disease and a left shoulder disorder, as well as his requests to increase disability ratings. The decision also noted that no new and material evidence had been received to reopen the claim for duodenal ulcer disease.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for further action, including scheduling a videoconference hearing before a Veterans Law Judge at the RO.

The VA has granted a 50% evaluation for the veteran's service-connected right shoulder disorder, which includes scar and tendonitis.,However, the RO denied an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for the veteran's service-connected right ulnar neuropathy.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for traumatic arthritis of the left ankle and right shoulder, finding that the evidence does not support a higher rating under applicable VA regulations.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a shoulder or thoracic/lumbar spine disability attributable to his active military service and therefore denied both claims for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection of a right ankle condition and an increased rating for his right shoulder disability. The Board found no current right ankle disability, and concluded that the veteran did not have chronic right ankle symptoms during service or within one year after separation from service. For the right shoulder disability, the Board noted subjective complaints of persistent pain but found no evidence of a current disability on examination.

The Board found that the veteran's left shoulder disorder was not incurred in or aggravated by service and denied his claim for service connection.

The veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has determined that the veteran's hypertension, heart disease, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, low back disability (arthritis), left knee disability, residuals of a left hand injury with tremors, and degenerative arthritis of the left shoulder were not incurred in or aggravated by active service. The claims for increased ratings are also denied.

The Board denied a higher initial rating for the veteran's right shoulder disability, finding that his range of motion did not warrant a higher rating than 20 percent.

The Board found that arthritis of joints other than the fingers, right shoulder, right knee and back was not present within one year of the veteran's discharge from service and is not etiologically related to service. The claim for service connection was denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disorder and increased ratings for his left knee and left shoulder disabilities. The decision also noted that there was no evidence of a nexus between any current psychiatric or musculoskeletal conditions and service.