Wrist & hand decisions — 2020

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically failing to obtain VA examinations prior to denying his claims.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, requiring VA examinations to determine if his claimed disabilities had their onset during or are otherwise related to his military service.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, requiring VA examinations to determine if his claimed disabilities had their onset during or are otherwise related to his military service.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for various conditions, including anxiety, left knee disability, back disability, right wrist disability, sleep apnea, IBS, and hypertension. The Veteran's appeal is pending further development.

The Board has remanded the cases for additional development due to inadequate prior opinions and incomplete evidentiary development.

The Veteran's left wrist ulna dislocation with pain and limited motion is being remanded for further evaluation due to the timing of his surgery.

The Board has remanded several issues related to various disabilities, including uterine fibroids, right knee disability, scars of the right knee and abdomen, lumbar spine disability, left lower extremity radiculopathy, cervical spine disability, cervical radiculopathy of the left upper extremity, left breast scars, Kienbach's disease with arthritis of the right wrist, and Kienbach's disease with arthritis of the left wrist. The remand requires consideration of additional evidence and issuance of a supplemental statement of the case (SSOC).

The Board dismissed the issues of service connection for right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome and left knee disability, as well as the claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for a right knee disability. The Veteran's right knee disability is currently rated at 10 percent.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, a bilateral foot disorder, and fibromyalgia. The issues of service connection for a bilateral knee disability are also being remanded due to procedural errors in the prior rating decisions.

The Veteran was granted a total disability evaluation based on individual unemployability (TDIU) beginning October 1, 2005. The appeal period began in June 2005 and the Veteran meets the schedular criteria for an award of TDIU during this entire period.

The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD and has remanded the claim of right wrist disability.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus and has remanded the issues of service connection for low back condition, obstructive sleep apnea (secondary to tinnitus), and carpal tunnel syndrome of bilateral upper extremities.

The Veteran's right carpal tunnel and de Quervain's syndromes were denied service connection as they did not manifest during service or within one year of separation, and are not etiologically related to her active service. The TDIU claim was also denied due to the lack of a combined rating at 60% or more for multiple service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's right wrist Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is rated at 50 percent, but not higher, effective from June 3, 2014.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, a back disability (including scoliosis), and a nerve disability (including sciatica) due to incomplete development of the record.

The Board denied a higher evaluation for the Veteran's left wrist disability, finding that the current evaluation of 10 percent is appropriate given the lack of ankylosis and no evidence of neurological or vascular disabilities.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral wrist and knee disabilities, finding no evidence of a chronic condition related to his active service. The right hand claim is remanded for clarification on whether the Veteran currently has a diagnosis of cold injury residuals.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate duty to assist and insufficient reasoning in the previous decision.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for left wrist strain and migraine headaches, but granted a 30 percent rating for migraine headaches effective October 14, 2016. The Board also denied service connection for sciatica, back disability, and left ankle disability.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claims to reopen service connection for left wrist and left thumb disabilities, but has remanded these issues for further development.