Wrist & hand decisions — 2022

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a left wrist condition has been reopened, but the appeal is still pending. The VA is required to obtain an opinion on whether his sleep apnea is related to or aggravated by his service-connected allergic rhinitis and if he has any current skin condition. Additionally, the VA must provide examinations for his left wrist condition and lower back condition.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various knee, wrist, foot, and depressive disorder disabilities have been granted with effective dates of December 29, 2007.,Service connection has also been established for depressive disorder.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran's left wrist scar is related to his military service. The case will be returned for an addendum opinion from a VA examiner.

The Veteran's combined disability rating is 60%, which does not meet the criteria for a TDIU. The case is being referred to the Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for chronic joint pains, bursitis of the right wrist, chondromalacia of the left and right knee, and left ankle strain. The Veteran's psychiatric disorder (claimed as memory loss) is also being remanded.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection, ratings for carpal tunnel syndrome, and TDIU due to incomplete information in previous examinations and lack of compliance with remand directives.

The Board has remanded the claims for left elbow, right wrist, and left wrist conditions due to inadequate information provided by the VA examiner in previous opinions. The Veteran's statements of continuity of symptoms since service are considered credible.

The Veteran's tinnitus, left foot callouses, and right foot callouses have been granted service connection. The low back disability has also been reopened for further review.,Service connection is established for arthritis of the ankles, but not for the left wrist or knee.

The Board denied service connection for a back condition, left knee condition, right knee condition, bilateral hand condition, and bilateral wrist condition. The Veteran did not provide evidence of current disabilities or in-service events that may have caused these conditions.,The Board also denied service connection for headaches. The Veteran did not provide evidence of current disabilities or in-service events that may have caused these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for a heart murmur is dismissed. The issues of entitlement to service connection for a left wrist disability and an acquired psychiatric disorder (depression) are remanded for further development.

The Veteran's sleep apnea is granted as related to service. The bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and hearing loss disability are denied.,The Board finds that remands are warranted for the claims of vertigo, Meniere's disease, respiratory disabilities, and TDIU due to inextricability.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The rating for unspecified anxiety disorder prior to January 14, 2022 was denied as the symptoms did not warrant a higher rating.,The rating for unspecified anxiety disorder since January 14, 2022 was also denied due to lack of evidence showing moderate incomplete paralysis or other symptomatology that would warrant an increased rating.

The Board has granted service connection for migraine headaches, left wrist strain with degenerative arthritis, and left knee strain. The conditions are found to be related to service based on the Veteran's credible reports of symptoms in-service and their persistence since then.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations, treatment records, and verification of his military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability.,The Board has remanded the issues regarding sleep disturbance, left wrist disability, right wrist disability, left hand disability, right hand disability, shin splints of the right leg, and shin splints of the left leg to allow for further development.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's left wrist disability. The examiner needs to consider all relevant evidence, including the Veteran's self-reporting and private medical records.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims due to errors in the duty to assist and insufficient evidence for adjudication.

The Board has remanded the claims for further development due to inadequate VA examinations in December 2019, which did not address positive evidence of record.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened and granted. The Board has determined that the Veteran's right knee, left knee, low back, acquired psychiatric disorder (e.g., PTSD, Anxiety, Depression), GERD, hemorrhoids, hypertension, left ankle, right ankle, left elbow, left shoulder, left wrist, right wrist, and sciatic nerve disorders affecting both lower extremities are all service-connected.

The appeal for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for GERD is dismissed. The claims for service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome, digestive system disorder (IBS), respiratory disorder (rhinitis and sarcoidosis), and joint and muscle pain are reopened due to new and material evidence.