Wrist & hand decisions — 2019

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a right wrist disability was granted by the AOJ while in remand status, and thus the appeal is dismissed.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a renal disorder has been reopened. The Board also remanded several issues including initial ratings for various conditions such as tibia stress fracture, hypertension, head scar, burn scar of the left wrist and arm, migraine disorder, PTSD with TBI, right tibia stress fracture, and tinnitus.

The Board has denied the appellant's claims for service connection for conjunctivitis, arthritis of hands and thumbs, bilateral wrist disability (pain and popping), and bilateral foot disability (blisters and calluses). The left shoulder disability claim is also remanded.,Service connection was not granted as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions. The Board found that the appellant's claims for service connection are denied.

The Veteran's claims for PTSD, depression, body muscle spasms (now claimed as arthritis right hip and bilateral wrist), status-post intercostal neuritis (claimed as chest pain), loss of teeth for compensation purposes, TDIU, and specially adapted housing are all remanded due to inadequate examination reports and the need for additional evidence. The petition to reopen the previously denied claim for loss of teeth for compensation purposes is also remanded.

The Veteran's appeal includes issues related to increased ratings for various service-connected disabilities and the issue of entitlement to service connection for a right ankle disorder, claimed as Achilles’ tendonitis. The Board has determined that additional examinations are needed in order to provide new VA examinations.

The Board has decided to remand several issues related to the Veteran's claims for increased ratings, including those for his right wrist fracture, cervical spine degenerative disc disease, and radiculopathy of the right upper extremity.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied because he failed to report for a VA examination without good cause, and the Board found that entitlement could not be established in this case without current VA examinations.

The Veteran's left wrist disability has worsened since the last VA examination, and updated treatment records are needed. The case is being remanded for a current examination and to obtain new medical records.

The Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for status post hairline fracture of the left medial patella and a rating in excess of 10 percent for tinnitus have been dismissed.,The Veteran's applications to reopen his claims for service connection for right knee, right hip, left hip, and acquired psychiatric disabilities are granted. The claims for nerve condition, left wrist disability, right wrist disability, arthritis, lumbar spine disability, and cervical spine disability remain pending.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral toenail onychomycosis, Type II diabetes mellitus, left wrist disorder, right wrist disorder, bilateral hip disorder, left knee DJD, right knee DJD, and hypertension due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.

The Veteran's claims are being remanded due to the need for updated VA treatment records, including from the Iowa City VAMC and SSA records. Additionally, new examinations are needed for his left wrist disability and scars.

The Veteran's claim for service connection has been granted, but the specific conditions are not related to his military service or a service-connected condition.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a current disability for the claimed left and right shoulder, elbow, wrist conditions. Therefore, service connection cannot be established.

The Veteran's claims of service connection for a right shoulder disability and a right wrist disability are reopened. However, further development is necessary before the Board can properly adjudicate the claims.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, sleep apnea, and asthma were dismissed due to the Veteran withdrawing his appeal.,New evidence was received sufficient to reopen claims for service connection for a back disability and a right ankle disability. Service connection is granted for these conditions.

The claim of entitlement to service connection for lumbago has been granted. The claims of entitlement to service connection for left and right CTS of the wrists have been remanded.

The Veteran's initial ratings for left wrist and elbow disabilities are granted, with a separate rating of 10% for abnormal motion and decreased strength of the left thumb. The Veteran is also granted an initial rating of 30% for migraine headaches, effective from the date of the decision.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for left and right carpal tunnel syndrome were denied as the evidence did not demonstrate more than mild impairment, which is already reflected in the current 10% rating.

The rating reduction from 20 percent to 10 percent for cervical spine strain with degenerative arthritis status post C2 fracture was improper, and the 20 percent rating is restored.,Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for service-connected a fracture of the right radial styloid is denied.,Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 30 percent for service-connected hypertensive heart disease with left ventricular dysfunction and an ejection fraction greater than 50 percent but less than 7 METs resulting in relevant symptomatology is denied.,Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent for service-connected anxiety is denied.,Entitlement to a compensable disability rating for service-connected right wrist scar is denied.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinion and referred an increased rating claim for traumatic arthritis of the wrist and fourth finger of the left hand.