Shoulder decisions — 2021

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to insufficient evidence showing his service-connected disabilities prevent him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.

Your appeals have been dismissed as the appellant has withdrawn them.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional medical records and examinations. The main issues are related to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including depression, and various other conditions such as right shoulder degenerative arthritis, lumbar spine strain, hip strains, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), positional vertigo, coccydynia, knee patellar tendonitis, and migraine headaches. The Veteran's service-connected conditions are being considered for their impact on these issues.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to address the Veteran's claims for service connection of various musculoskeletal disorders, including bilateral knee and shoulder disorders, lumbar spine disorder, and cervical spine disorder. The issues are related to secondary service connection.

The Board has granted service connection for residuals of frostbite of the bilateral feet, PTSD, and hypertension. The claims for TBI, right shoulder disability, left shoulder disability, carpal tunnel syndrome, bilateral eye disability, and back disability are remanded.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have prevented him from securing and following substantially gainful employment, leading to a TDIU since October 2, 2015. The hypertension claim is remanded for updated blood pressure readings.

The Veteran's application to reopen the claim for service connection for GERD is granted. The Board has also remanded the issues of service connection for severe arthritis of the lower back, hypertension, a disorder of the bilateral shoulders, and left index trigger finger.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection due to conflicting medical evidence regarding current diagnoses of shoulder disabilities and nerve disorders. The Veteran needs to be examined again by a clinician to clarify these issues.

The Board denied service connection for a right shoulder disability, including arthritis, finding that the Veteran's current symptoms are more likely related to his multiple years of physical labor than an in-service injury.

The Board has granted a rating of 40 percent for the Veteran's left shoulder disability from January 22, 2013 to November 1, 2015, finding that his condition more nearly approximated ankylosis requiring a 40 percent rating under DC 5200.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a left shoulder disability, finding that there was no evidence of chronic left shoulder disability in service or within the applicable presumptive period. The Board also found that continuity of symptomatology since service had not been established.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for right shoulder and left knee disabilities due to deficiencies in the April 2021 VA medical opinions. The claims are now pending for further development.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left shoulder DJD, right shoulder DJD, lumbar spine DJD, and right knee DJD. The decision is based on a lack of evidence linking these conditions to his military service.,Service connection was not granted as the Board found no medical evidence that any of the Veteran's claimed disabilities were incurred or aggravated by his active duty.

The Board dismissed the appeals for neck, TBI, and upper extremity radiculopathy issues as they were withdrawn by the Veteran. Service connection was granted for arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine, right shoulder disorder, and lower extremity radiculopathies secondary to service-connected arthritis.

The Veteran's claims for service connection of back, neck, and bilateral shoulder disorders are remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Board denied an initial evaluation in excess of 20 percent for service-connected diabetes mellitus, type II and a rating in excess of 20 percent for left shoulder disability. The Veteran's diabetes did not require daily insulin or regulation of activities, while his left shoulder disability was rated at the maximum schedular evaluation.

The Veteran's service connection claim for gum disease is denied, but a 10 percent rating is granted for his right shoulder surgical scar.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's right shoulder, left shoulder, neck, and lower back disabilities, finding that these conditions are more likely than not related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete records and need for further examination. The issues include gout, residuals of pneumonia, bladder disorder, kidney disorder, right foot disorder, left foot disorder, bilateral knee disorder (previously claimed as arthritis), bilateral shoulder disorder (previously claimed as arthritis), and bilateral ankle disorder (previously claimed as arthritis).

The Veteran's service connection claims for right shoulder, elbow, cervical spine, and lumbar spine disabilities have been denied as there is no evidence of a chronic condition during or within one year after service, and the current conditions are not related to his military service.