Shoulder decisions — 2017

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including a new examination to assess his ability to maintain substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, particularly his PTSD, render him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment due to severe impairment in work functioning.

The Veteran's right wrist scarring is not compensable, but he meets the criteria for TDIU based on his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional medical records and for further examinations to determine the current severity of his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's service-connected left shoulder tendinopathy has not been manifested by limitation of motion of the arm approximating 25 degrees from the side for any part of the initial rating period from October 2, 2007.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection for a right knee disability and is denied. For her left shoulder disability, the evidence shows that she meets the schedular requirements for TDIU but there is no plausible basis to conclude that her service-connected condition prevents her from securing or following substantially gainful employment.

The Board denied the Veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection for a left shoulder injury, finding that the new evidence did not relate to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim and did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim.

The Veteran's left shoulder disability is currently rated at 20 percent, but the evidence does not support a higher rating as his range of motion has consistently been greater than 25 degrees from the side throughout the appeal period.

The Veteran's right shoulder condition is rated at 30 percent, effective from the date of his claim. The Veteran's residuals of a right ankle fracture are currently rated at 10 percent.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability, specifically the residuals of a fractured right clavicle, is rated at 20% prior to July 27, 2017. Beginning on that date, the rating has been increased to 30%. The increase in rating is based on current findings indicating limitation of motion at approximately midway between side and shoulder level.

The Veteran does not have a current diagnosis for a bilateral shoulder disorder, upper extremity disorder, or lower extremity disorder. The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's symptoms are related to his service-connected PTSD and other pre-existing conditions.,There is no evidence of any in-service injury or illness that could be linked to these claimed disorders.

The Veteran is entitled to a combined rating of 20 percent for his right shoulder bursitis and clavicle or scapula impairment, with the higher rating applied to the major arm. The Board finds that he meets the criteria for a 20 percent rating under Diagnostic Code 5201 for his right shoulder bursitis and a 20 percent rating under Diagnostic Code 5203 for his clavicle or scapula impairment.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder disability is related to his active duty service and has granted service connection for this condition. The cervical spine disability, however, was not found to be related to service or any other compensable condition.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability, which includes traumatic arthritis and dislocation, is rated at 40 percent due to limited range of motion with additional functional loss.

The Board has granted a 30 percent disability rating for the Veteran's cervical spine disability, effective from the date of the decision. The Veteran's olecranon bursitis, left elbow, is no longer on appeal as he withdrew his request for an increased rating.

The Veteran's claims of entitlement to increased ratings for his right shoulder and left knee disabilities have been remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.

The Veteran's left shoulder disability, characterized by a labral tear and osteoarthritis, is currently rated at 20 percent under Diagnostic Code 5201. The evidence does not support an increase in the rating beyond this level.

The Veteran's back disability was found to be incurred during active service, and the left shoulder disability is related to service. The initial increased rating for bilateral hearing loss remains denied.

The Board found that the Veteran's current shoulder disability is not related to his in-service injuries and denied service connection.

The Veteran's increased rating claim for epilepsy was denied, his left shoulder disability service connection claim was not granted, and he was granted a TDIU.