Shoulder decisions — 2020

The Board has granted service connection for cervical spine, right shoulder, and left shoulder disabilities. The claims were reopened due to new evidence submitted since the July 2015 rating decision.

The Board denied service connection for a right shoulder disability, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus, Type II.,There was no evidence of herbicide exposure during service.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examinations and missing treatment records. The Veteran's left shoulder disability is being evaluated again for an increased evaluation.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, a bilateral knee disability, a left foot disability, and a left shoulder disability as there is no evidence of these conditions during the pendency of the appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for cervical spine disability, but the other issues on appeal are remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for left shoulder disability and bilateral hearing loss, finding no current disabilities meet VA criteria.

The Veteran meets the schedular requirements for a TDIU rating and has been unable to maintain substantially gainful employment due to service-connected disabilities, including his generalized anxiety disorder with depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), back disability, shoulder disability, headache disability, and hemorrhoid disability.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right shoulder disability, finding that there was no evidence of a direct relationship to service and insufficient competent evidence linking it to his service-connected left shoulder disability.

The Veteran's right and left shoulder conditions are not service-connected as secondary to his right elbow injury.,His sinus condition is also not service-connected.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding his tinea pedis, left knee condition, left elbow condition, and left shoulder condition.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various shoulder disorders, radiculopathy of the left leg, and arthritis of the cervical spine have been denied as there is no evidence of any in-service injury or disease that could be linked to these conditions.

The claim of entitlement to service connection for fibromyalgia is granted. The claims of entitlement to service connection for a respiratory disorder, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, right elbow disability, and left elbow disability are denied. The claim of entitlement to service connection for cardiopulmonary disorder is remanded.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability (Bankart’s lesion) is granted, and the rating for lumbosacral strain remains at 10 percent.

The Board has granted service connection for a left shoulder disability, finding that the Veteran's current condition is at least in equipoise with his service-connected lumbar spine and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities. Service connection for a cervical spine disability was denied due to lack of credible evidence supporting the Veteran's claim that he sustained a fall resulting in a cervical spine injury during active duty.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are granted as they are likely related to acoustic trauma during service.,The Veteran's left shoulder, cervical spine, lumbar spine, and PTSD disorders are remanded for further examination.

The Board has remanded the cases due to insufficient evidence regarding the direct service connection of the Veteran's bilateral shoulder conditions.

The Board has determined that there is no current right shoulder disability and thus the claim of service connection for a right shoulder disability is denied.

The Veteran's appeal for an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for a left shoulder disability, to include a rotator cuff tear and bursitis, is denied. The Board found no evidence of ankylosis or instability that would warrant a higher rating.

The Veteran's claims for effective dates prior to November 7, 2018 for the grant of service connection for migraine headaches and right shoulder osteoarthritic changes associated with left shoulder tendonitis are denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates are denied and his claims for service connection are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions.