Wrist & hand decisions — 2024

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings related to her service-connected right clavicle fracture, left wrist fracture, and left wrist scars are being remanded due to the need to obtain information about the qualifications of the VA examiners who conducted the December 2019 examinations.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right wrist disability, finding that there is no evidence to support a link between his current condition and his military service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for bipolar disorder and sleep disturbances have been denied as there is no current diagnosis of these conditions separate from her service-connected major depressive disorder.,Service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome of the right upper extremity has been remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding its onset during active duty.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for left shoulder, wrist, and hand disabilities due to insufficient examination reports.

The Board has granted an effective date of September 24, 2013 for the award of TDIU based on the Veteran's service-connected disabilities. The decision also addresses whether earlier effective dates should have been granted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his right wrist disability and back disability, rendered him unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation as of August 9, 2015. The Board granted the TDIU effective from that date.

The Veteran's appeal for increased compensation for his service-connected left wrist disability has raised the question of potential entitlement to service connection for neurological manifestations of his left upper extremity. Further development is needed to determine whether he has such manifestations and their relationship to his service-connected condition.

The Board has granted service connection for asthma, but the claims for back disability, bilateral CTS, and bilateral leg disability are remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for service connection on multiple conditions, including right hand, wrist and thumb condition, dizziness and nausea, ear condition, left and right hand carpal tunnel syndrome, and major depression. The appeal is dismissed.

The Veteran's claims for tinnitus and migraines have been dismissed due to untimely filing. The claims of service connection for nervousness, sleep disturbance, left shoulder condition, left arm condition, left forearm (elbow) condition, left wrist condition, left hand carpal tunnel, right pinky and ring finger condition, right hip condition, benign cysts on hip, and bilateral eye condition have been dismissed as they are not supported by current medical evidence of a diagnosed mental health disorder or physical injury.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral wrist and knee disabilities due to duty-to-assist errors. The Veteran is seeking service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome of both wrists and knee disabilities, including pes planus and degenerative joint disease.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for cervical spine strain, right and left knee strain, and bilateral wrist with carpal tunnel and tendinitis are being remanded due to the need for a VA medical opinion regarding the etiology of her claimed conditions.

The Veteran's right and left carpal tunnel syndrome are currently rated at 10 percent each, but the Board finds that there is insufficient evidence to warrant a higher rating.,The claims for service connection of right and left elbow disabilities have been remanded due to a failure to provide a medical examination or opinion.

The Board has granted service connection for left wrist arthritis. The claims for left hand arthritis and neuropathy of the left upper extremity are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.

The Veteran's service-connected right wrist and left knee disabilities prevented him from securing and maintaining substantially gainful employment starting from June 1, 2011.

The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service-connected. The claims for bilateral hearing loss, sleep apnea, median nerve paralysis of the right and left hands, and carpal tunnel syndromes are remanded due to procedural errors.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for chronic right ankle pain, chronic left ankle pain, right elbow strain (dominant), left elbow strain (non-dominant), chronic right wrist pain (dominant), chronic left wrist pain (non-dominant), and chronic left knee pain were denied in the November 2019 rating decision. The Veteran did not file a Notice of Disagreement within one year, so the decision became final.,The Veteran filed a Supplemental Claim on September 26, 2019, which was received by VA and granted service connection for these conditions effective from that date.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to reconsider the previously denied claims of service connection for anxiety, dermatitis, left wrist condition, right wrist condition, low back pain, neck pain, sinusitis, migraine headaches, and TBI. The claims are being remanded for further adjudication.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral wrist strains and left elbow degenerative joint disease must be remanded due to a duty-to-assist error in failing to provide an adequate medical examination and opinion.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for left wrist carpal tunnel syndrome is granted with an effective date of June 10, 2019.