Shoulder decisions — 2017

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions, including hypertension, right shoulder disorder, left shoulder disorder, right knee disorder, left knee disorder, cervical spine disorder, and lumbar spine disorder. The reasons given were that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service or any presumptive exposure.

The Board denied service connection for head injury, tinnitus, and left shoulder condition as the evidence did not establish a direct relationship to service.

The Board has remanded the claims for further development due to inadequate opinions in the January 2017 VA examinations. The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, bilateral hand disorder, and right shoulder disorder are all being reviewed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right shoulder disability did not have its onset in service, was not manifest to a compensable degree within one year of separation from service, and is not otherwise related to service or to service-connected disability. Therefore, the claim for service connection for a right shoulder disability other than tendonitis is denied.

The Board found no current evidence of a bilateral knee or shoulder disability, and the low back disability was not shown to be related to service. Therefore, service connection for these conditions is denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for his service-connected tinnitus and hearing loss, as well as his claims for service connection for various conditions. The Veteran was granted service connection for diabetes mellitus, Type II.

The Veteran's claims for higher initial ratings for the lumbar spine disability and service connection for a right shoulder disability were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for the assigned disabilities prior to September 15, 2010 or from September 15, 2010.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss prior to July 23, 2013 was denied as his puretone threshold average did not warrant a compensable evaluation. The claim for a higher disability rating for left shoulder separation remains on appeal.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a service-connected disability for which his colon polyps can be linked, and there is no evidence of herbicide exposure. The right shoulder tumor was also not found to be related to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current left shoulder disability, but finds that he has arthralgia of the bilateral ankles which is related to his active service. The claim for service connection for bilateral ankle disability is granted.

The Board has determined that the service-connected disabilities did not cause or contribute to the Veteran's death. The respiratory failure and pneumonia that caused his death were not related to service, while the service-connected conditions (cervical spine limitation of motion, left shoulder condition from a gunshot wound, PTSD) are not considered contributory causes of death.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and providing an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's right shoulder strain.

The Board denied reopening the claim for service connection for a bilateral knee disability and found that new and material evidence had not been received. The claims for increased ratings for right shoulder strain and lumbar strain remain pending.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine disability, a rating in excess of 10 percent for left shoulder rotator cuff injury, and a rating in excess of 10 percent for residuals of right knee arthroscopy and chondromalacia patella. The claim for TDIU was also denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and granted. He was awarded a compensable rating (10%) for bilateral hearing loss.

The Veteran's claims for ischemic heart disease, hypertension, residuals of a cerebral vascular accident, cervical spine disability, and left shoulder disability were denied as there is no evidence of these conditions in service or due to herbicide exposure. The Veteran was not exposed to Agent Orange during his service.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, which includes symptoms such as flattened affect, panic attacks more than once a week, and difficulty in understanding complex commands, has been rated at 70 percent since February 1, 2011. The effective date for the increased rating is set to February 1, 2011.

The Board has determined that service connection is not warranted for the Veteran's claimed right ankle, back, bilateral ingrown toenail(s), and right shoulder disabilities. The evidence does not support a finding of a link between these conditions and his military service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a right knee, left knee, right shoulder, left shoulder, low back, right eye, or left eye disability that is service-connected. The blood condition claim was also denied.

The Veteran's service-connected left shoulder osteoarthritis does not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and referral for extraschedular TDIU consideration is not warranted.