Shoulder Board decisions

The Veteran's service-connected conditions, including the residuals of a laminectomy, sinusitis with rhinitis, hypertension, and bursitis of the left shoulder, have met the percentage requirements for the award of a schedular TDIU. Competent evidence indicates that these disabilities prevent him from obtaining and retaining substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the AOJ for additional development and consideration of his claims.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected right shoulder disability, as the previous examination findings are inconsistent with the Veteran's statements and private treatment records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder disorder, including arthritis, was not incurred or aggravated during his active duty service and cannot be presumed to have been incurred in service. The evidence does not support a finding of continuity of symptomatology from service onwards.

The Board has granted service connection for left shoulder labral tear, lumbar facet arthritis, and left knee arthritis. The Veteran's head injury residuals claim is denied.

The Board denied increased ratings for cervical spine mechanical strain, lumbosacral spine mechanical strain, left knee patellofemoral pain syndrome with musculoligamentous strain, right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome with musculoligamentous strain, and right shoulder tendonitis and bursitis. The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disorder was denied as final due to lack of appeal within one year of notification.

The Veteran's hearing loss, tinnitus, left shoulder osteoarthritis, and right shoulder osteoarthritis are all found to be related to his active military service.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination to determine if the Veteran's claimed shoulder disabilities are related to service.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed in order to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims, including for his TDIU claim.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and his left shoulder disability is also rated at 30 percent. Both disabilities are characterized by pain without evidence of severe painful motion or weakness in the affected extremities.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for bowel incontinence and bladder incontinence, and the Board dismissed these claims. The right shoulder disorder claim is remanded for further development.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to assess the current level of impairment due to his service-connected right shoulder disability. The case will be returned to the Board after this development.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed as he withdrew his request for a rating in excess of 20 percent for left shoulder myositis prior to the Board making a decision.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for an increased rating for right shoulder disability and service connection for right knee disability. The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding the increased rating claim, while the Board found that there was no evidence to support the Veteran's contention that his current right knee DJD and arthritis were related to in-service injuries.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to obtain medical records and service personnel records, as well as a VA examination for the Veteran's cervical spine and right shoulder disabilities. The appeal will be remanded to the AOJ.

The Board granted service connection for sarcoidosis and assigned a noncompensable rating effective August 5, 2008. The Veteran's multiple joint and muscle arthralgias are rated as part of the sarcoidosis with an initial compensable rating.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral shoulder disorder and numbness of the bilateral upper extremity are being remanded due to incomplete development, including obtaining VA treatment records from Dr. M.L.T., scheduling an appropriate VA examination, and ensuring all evidence is reviewed.

The Veteran seeks service connection for left shoulder, neck, and low back disabilities. The case is being remanded to obtain additional VA medical records from the period of August 1975 to August 1999 and to provide addendums to the previous examination opinions.

The Veteran's right shoulder DJD and left shoulder tendonitis have been granted increased ratings, with the right shoulder now rated at 30 percent effective January 29, 2014.

The Veteran's right shoulder disability is currently rated at 20 percent from August 8, 2012 and higher evaluations are not warranted based on the evidence of record.