Shoulder decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various knee, ankle, and shoulder disabilities due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran is not presumed to have a chronic condition in service or within presumptive periods.

The Board has remanded the cases of hypertension, arthritis of the fingers (also claimed as gout), and TDIU due to service-connected disabilities for further development.

The Veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus, bilateral hearing loss disability, tinnitus, and various cold injury residuals are denied. The claim for chronic obstructive airway disease is also denied.

The Board has remanded the cases of right shoulder arthritis, right ankle condition, and left ankle condition for further development. The Veteran's service connection claims are being reviewed due to lack of current diagnoses in some instances.

The Board has decided to remand two issues related to service connection for bone spurs of the right and left shoulders due to insufficient evidence in the record, including a lack of medical records from 1999 to 2011. The Veteran's private treatment records are also not available.

The Board has denied service connection for various disabilities, including right lower extremity radiculopathy, left leg disability, right leg disability, arthritis, tendonitis, neck disability, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, left upper extremity radiculopathy, and right upper extremity radiculopathy. The decision also notes that the Veteran's right knee disability is not service-connected.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings have been remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining VA vocational rehabilitation records and treatment records from Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital. The Veteran also needs an addendum opinion regarding his bilateral shoulder and knee disabilities.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling additional VA examinations to assess the severity of the Veteran's service-connected left knee, left shoulder, and right shoulder disabilities.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to an inadequate VA examination, and a new one must be conducted.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient medical opinions and need for additional evidence.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for neck, right knee, left knee, sleep disorder (including insomnia), bilateral foot, bilateral eye, right shoulder, left shoulder, low back, and upper back disorders due to inadequate examination opinions. The claims are being returned for additional development.

The Board has remanded the cases for additional development and consideration, including obtaining an addendum opinion regarding the Veteran's right and left shoulder disabilities and a VA examination to address his sleep apnea and sleep disturbances.

The Board denied service connection for right shoulder, left shoulder, and neck disabilities due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's active duty service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including degenerative joint disease of the right shoulder and degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. The Board has granted entitlement to TDIU from August 22, 2015. However, his claim for a rating in excess of 20 percent for right shoulder disability is remanded.

The Board has remanded the claims for additional development to determine if there is clear and unmistakable evidence that a respiratory disability pre-existed service, whether any such disability was aggravated during service, and to provide an opinion on the etiology of the left shoulder disability.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient in-service medical records. The Veteran needs to provide information about his injuries and treatment during service, and VA will attempt to obtain any missing records.

The Board has granted service connection for ocular migraines. The remaining issues of right leg, left leg, cervical spine (neck pain), and right shoulder conditions are remanded for further development.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple conditions were dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.

The Veteran's speech disability is remanded due to its potential connection to a stroke. The ratings for her shoulder disabilities, radiculopathy, and hernia are also remanded as the evidence suggests worsening symptoms. Her TDIU claim is remanded as it involves employment issues.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD and shoulder and knee conditions, do not preclude him from securing substantially gainful employment prior to November 12, 2014.