Shoulder Board decisions

The Board has granted service connection for a right shoulder disability and found that the veteran's psychiatric disability is not related to service. The issue of entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for a low back disability was withdrawn by the appellant.

The veteran's claims for service connection regarding a psychiatric disorder, cervical spine disorder, and left shoulder disorder are being remanded due to the need to verify the location of a claimed jeep accident during service.

The January 1980 rating decision denying service connection for right shoulder injury remains final. The additional evidence received since that decision does not meet the criteria to reopen the claim.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and consideration, including obtaining medical records from Dr. Cohen and VA Medical Center in Oklahoma City.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his right shoulder separation with degenerative arthritic changes, currently rated at 30 percent.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling a new VA examination to evaluate the current severity of the right shoulder disability.

The veteran's claim for a disability rating in excess of 20 percent for residuals of a right shoulder injury was denied.,Service connection for diabetes mellitus was also denied.

The Board found that the veteran's right shoulder and wrist injuries are not proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected knee disabilities, thus denying the claim for secondary service connection.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for his left shoulder dislocation with degenerative changes, postoperative, as there was no evidence showing that his condition warranted a higher rating prior to August 11, 2003.

The Board has determined that the veteran's currently diagnosed recurrent melanoma of the right shoulder, status post resection and chemotherapy, was neither incurred in nor aggravated by active military service. The evidence does not etiologically link the veteran's current condition to his service or any incident therein.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his left shoulder post-traumatic arthritis and supraspinatus tendinosis was denied as the evidence did not show that a higher evaluation is warranted.,The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his chronic cubital tunnel syndrome with ulnar neuritis, left upper extremity (elbow and hand symptomatology) was also denied as the evidence did not show that a higher evaluation is warranted.

The Board found that the veteran's current bilateral shoulder condition is not due to a disease or injury in active service and denied her claim for service connection.

The Board found that the veteran's claimed conditions were not incurred or aggravated by service and denied all of his claims for increased ratings.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected post-operative lumbar laminectomy with history of strain is being remanded due to the need for additional VA examination and development. The veteran also asserts secondary service connection for depression and arthritis in shoulders and legs, which are not part of the main issue but will be referred to the RO.

The veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred at a private medical center on January 4, 2004 is denied as there was no emergency condition that would have been hazardous to life or health if delayed.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral shoulder disability and a neck disorder, finding that there is no evidence of such disabilities being related to military service. The claim for PTSD was remanded but not fully resolved.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a gunshot wound to the right shoulder in service and the veteran's current right shoulder condition has not been shown to be causally related to service. As such, the claim for service connection for residuals of a gunshot wound to the right shoulder is denied.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions, finding that there is no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The RO denied the veteran's claims for higher initial ratings for his claimed conditions, finding that none of them warranted a rating higher than 10 percent.

The Board found no current left shoulder disability attributable to the service-connected left shoulder strain, thus denying the claim of service connection.