Wrist & hand decisions — 2025

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and initial rating, as well as a TDIU, due to insufficient evidence linking his claimed conditions to active service or establishing current diagnoses.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for left and right wrist carpal tunnel syndrome due to an inadequate VA medical opinion that failed to consider the Veteran's lay statements.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and an initial rating of 10 percent for a left wrist scar, while denying higher ratings for ganglion cyst and bilateral hearing loss.

The Board granted service connection for sero negative rheumatoid arthritis of the left hand, fingers, and wrist; right hand, fingers, and wrist; left knee; and right knee due to toxic exposure risk activity (TERA) during service.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for left wrist/metacarpal condition and a compensable rating for cervical dysplasia, to include LEEP (x5), as it failed to provide notice of the right to a hearing under 38 C.F.R. § 3.103(b)(1) and (d)(1).

The Veteran withdrew the appeal for initial disability ratings in excess of 10 percent for right and left upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome, resulting in the dismissal of these issues.

The Board denied service connection for all the claimed conditions as there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between any of them and the Veteran's active service.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, left and right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome, but granted service connection for migraines.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus but denied service connection for the remaining conditions, including hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues.

The Board denied service connection for asthma, hypertension, and vertigo. The claims for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy were also denied as not secondary to a service-connected disability. Some claims for various musculoskeletal conditions of the cervical spine, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles, feet, and fibromyalgia are remanded for further development.

The Board granted an initial rating of 70 percent for the Veteran's adjustment disorder, with mixed anxiety and depressed mood (acquired psychiatric disorder), but no higher.

The Board granted a 50% rating for lumbosacral strain, a separate 10% rating for left knee instability, and a 30% rating for tension headaches. The other claims were denied.

The Veteran's left ear hearing loss is granted, while the other claims are remanded for further development.

The Board remands the Veteran's claims for increased ratings of his right wrist scaphoid fracture residuals and right hand carpal and cubital tunnel syndrome to obtain new examinations that adequately address the severity of these conditions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for various disabilities, including a right shoulder disability and conditions secondary to it, as there was no evidence that VA treatment caused additional disability beyond what would have occurred due to pre-existing conditions.

The Board granted service connection for functional abdominal pain syndrome, a headache disorder, dyspnea, left elbow disorder, left wrist disorder, right wrist disorder, left knee disorder, and right foot plantar fasciitis. The Board denied an initial compensable rating for verruca vulgaris and bilateral hand scars. The Board remanded the claim for service connection for chronic fatigue syndrome.

The Board denied service connection for abnormal weight loss and/or loss of appetite, a compensable disability rating for the left wrist scar, and an increased rating for the distal radius fracture of the left wrist.

The Board denied the claims for an increased rating for right wrist chronic sprain and back scar, residual of shell fragment wound.

The Board remands the claim for a right wrist condition to correct a pre-decisional error, as the AOJ failed to obtain an adequate medical opinion.

The appeal for an increased disability rating of the right knee and claims for service connection for a traumatic brain injury, neck disability, and right wrist disability were dismissed due to prohibited concurrent elections under the modernized review system.