Shoulder Board decisions

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected residuals of a gunshot wound to the right shoulder and chest wall warrant a 40 percent evaluation, effective from the date of the decision.

The veteran's muscle injury residuals of the left thigh are rated at 20 percent, and his right shoulder arthritis is also rated at 20 percent. The combined rating for the right elbow fracture remains at 30 percent.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for entitlement to service connection for flat feet and right shoulder disability, finding that there was no evidence of a current disability related to military service.

The Board has determined that the appellant's arthritis in his left shoulder and both hands was not incurred or aggravated during service, nor may it be presumed to have been incurred due to exposure to Agent Orange. The VA examiner found no evidence of arthritis within one year after separation from service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right shoulder disability, lumbosacral strain, and antral gastritis and duodenitis. The appeals were not about service connection.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the veteran's claim of service connection for a right shoulder disability, which was previously denied in May 1975.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for residuals of a left shoulder injury, including recurrent dislocation and degenerative joint disease (DJD), based on new medical evidence linking these conditions to an in-service injury. The claim is now granted.

The Board denied the veteran's claim to reopen his service connection for chronic right shoulder dislocation, finding no new and material evidence.

The Board found no evidence of any shoulder or knee injury in service and concluded that the veteran's current arthritis is not related to his military service.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for degenerative joint disease of the knees, feet, shoulders, and wrists, finding no evidence that these conditions are related to his military service.

The VA has determined that the veteran's right shoulder impingement syndrome does not warrant an evaluation in excess of 20 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for arthritis of hands, shoulders, knees, ankles, and cervical spine, finding no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The VA denied an increased disability rating for the veteran's service-connected recurrent dislocation of the right shoulder, post-operative.

The Board denied higher ratings for the veteran's cervical spine and right shoulder disabilities, finding that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 20 percent for the cervical spine disability or a rating in excess of 10 percent for the right shoulder disability.

The Board has granted a 40 percent evaluation for the service-connected right shoulder disability, effective from August 17, 1998. The rating for the service-connected anesthesia of the right ulnar nerve remains at 30 percent.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left knee arthritis warrants a compensable disability rating of 10 percent, and service connection for residuals of right shoulder acromioclavicular separation is granted.

The veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including as secondary to herbicide exposure (Agent Orange), were denied. The Board found no evidence of current disability or a link between the claimed conditions and Agent Orange exposure.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right shoulder and right lung disabilities, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under VA's disability evaluation guidelines.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for a hearing before the Board at the RO.

The Board found that the veteran's residuals of a shell fragment wound to the right shoulder, including his acromioclavicular traumatic arthritis, manifest no more than moderately severe injury to Muscle Group III and therefore warrants a 30 percent evaluation.