Shoulder decisions — 2008

The Board denied service connection for a left arm disability and denied the claim for an increased rating for rhinitis. The veteran's left arm and shoulder issues were not found to be related to his military service.

The veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The RO assigned a 30 percent disability rating for the left shoulder disability, but did not address other issues such as TDIU or temporary total evaluations.

The Board has determined that the veteran's cervical spine, right shoulder, and left shoulder disorders were not incurred or aggravated by service. The claims for these conditions are therefore denied.

The Board found no evidence of a current right shoulder disability and denied the veteran's claim for service connection.

The veteran has withdrawn all his appeals regarding the claims of special monthly compensation based on the loss of use of the right foot, left foot, need for aid and attendance, housebound status, and earlier effective dates for service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for left shoulder disability, bipolar disorder, and low back disability due to lack of evidence showing in-service injury or occurrence.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left shoulder, right knee, and left knee disorders are related to his service on active duty. The claims for these conditions have been granted.

The Board found that the veteran did not sustain any injuries during service and that his current disabilities are unrelated to service. The VA examinations concluded that the current conditions are less likely due to the motor vehicle accident in 1969.

The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to his service-connected right shoulder disability is being remanded for further examination and consideration of an extraschedular evaluation.

The Board has granted service connection for tension headaches as they are aggravated by a service-connected cervical spine strain. The claim for left shoulder condition is denied as there is no current diagnosis of such condition.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claims for service connection have been denied across multiple issues, including neck disability, hip disability, bilateral hearing loss, right shoulder disability, and acquired psychiatric disability. The RO previously denied these claims as there was no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.

The veteran's initial claim for higher ratings for his right shoulder, right knee, left knee, left ankle, and hypertension disabilities was granted. The RO assigned a 20 percent rating for the right shoulder prior to August 22, 2007, and increased it to 30 percent effective that date. Ratings of 10 percent were assigned for his right knee, left knee, and left ankle disabilities since August 9, 2007.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for right shoulder and back disabilities, finding no competent evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Board denied service connection for neck and right shoulder pain as the evidence did not show a current disability related to service.

The Board has granted service connection for bronchitis and increased the rating for biceps tendonitis of the right shoulder to 30 percent, effective December 4, 2007. The veteran's claims for other conditions are pending.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral shin splints, a right shoulder condition, and a back condition as secondary to his service-connected bilateral knee disability.,There is no competent evidence showing that the veteran's current conditions are related to his service-connected bilateral knee disability.

The Board granted service connection for the veteran's conditions and assigned initial evaluations. The right shoulder scars, left ring finger fracture, and bilateral knee osteoarthritis were all granted with a 10% evaluation.

The Board denied service connection for the veteran's claimed degenerative arthritis conditions, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his service-connected ulcerative colitis and these disabilities.

The veteran's claim for a total disability rating based upon individual unemployability (TDIU) is being remanded due to the need for additional medical examination and opinion regarding his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that further action is needed to verify the appellant's periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) in the Georgia Air National Guard, as well as obtaining any outstanding service treatment records. The claim will be remanded for a VA examination and medical opinion regarding whether the appellant's skin cancer is related to his service, particularly his alleged exposure to the sun during his 26 years of service with the Air National Guard.