Shoulder decisions — 2020

The Veteran's left shoulder capsulitis was reduced from a 30 percent rating to a 20 percent rating, effective May 1, 2016. The reduction is granted as the evidence did not demonstrate improvement reasonably certain to continue under ordinary conditions of life.

The Veteran's right shoulder condition is granted service connection, while the bilateral ankle conditions are remanded for further review.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient consideration of the Veteran's lay statements and continuity of symptomatology. The VA examiner needs to provide an addendum opinion on whether the right shoulder disability is related to service, including the in-service injury during basic training.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for right and left knee disorders, as well as right and left shoulder disorders due to incomplete records. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss claim is denied.

The Veteran's scar disability, left fibula fracture, right tibia fracture, and right femur fracture are all denied prior to specific dates. The lower back disorder service connection is remanded. TDIU due to service-connected disabilities is also remanded.,Seizures have not met the criteria for higher ratings since September 23, 2019.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 30 percent for the Veteran's right shoulder disability, finding that the preponderance of evidence showed limited motion to midway between side and shoulder level.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the right shoulder, left shoulder and bilateral knee disability claims before a decision was made.

The Veteran's left shoulder disability is rated at a maximum of 30 percent for limitation of motion and a separate 20 percent rating for muscle group IV. The case is remanded for extraschedular consideration regarding TDIU from March 5, 2013 to October 18, 2016.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, headache disability, back disability, right knee disability, and right shoulder disability due to a lack of current disabilities.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for right ear hearing loss, left ear hearing loss, and right shoulder strain ratings due to new evidence. The TDIU claim is also being remanded as it may be affected by the increased rating claims.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a lumbar spine condition and a left shoulder condition, with the latter being secondary to the former. The appeal is remanded due to the need to obtain SSA disability records related to the Veteran's back injury.

The appeal seeking an increased rating greater than 50 percent for service-connected migraine headaches is dismissed.,The appeals seeking an increased ratings for left and right ankle limitations of motion, tinnitus, and allergic rhinitis (claimed as sinusitis) are dismissed.,An extraschedular total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) is granted solely due to the Veteran’s service-connected migraine headaches and residuals of a traumatic brain injury, subject to the laws and regulations governing the award of monetary benefits.

The Board has granted service connection for right and left shoulder disorders, but has remanded the claims for a right leg disorder, left leg disorder, left arm disorder (other than a left shoulder disorder), and left-sided chest disorder.

The Board has denied service connection for left shoulder disability, chest pain, low back disability, skin disability, and bilateral foot disability as secondary to a skin disability. The evidence does not support the Veteran's claims of in-service onset or causation.

The Veteran's left and right shoulder disabilities are each rated at 20 percent, as they do not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation under VA rating criteria.,The Veteran's sciatica of the left lower extremity is currently rated at 10 percent.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development and evaluation, including obtaining additional medical records and conducting a vocational rehabilitation assessment.

The Veteran's appeal for a total disability rating for individual unemployability (TDIU) was denied. The appeals for initial compensable ratings for right shoulder strain, bilateral tinea pedis and onychomycosis of the great toenails, and residuals, right hand status post transverse fracture distal fifth metacarpal were dismissed due to withdrawal by the Veteran's representative.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's appeal for further development and consideration, including obtaining additional records related to his in-service assault on a Military Policeman. The issues of service connection and TDIU are also being addressed as they are interrelated with the threshold matter concerning the character of discharge.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for various disabilities due to incomplete records and need for further medical opinions.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his left shoulder disability was denied due to failure to report for a scheduled VA examination. The claim for service connection for headaches was also denied as there is no evidence linking the current headache condition to active duty, including exposure to environmental hazards in the Persian Gulf.