Wrist & hand Board decisions

The Veteran's claim for left ear hearing loss has been granted, as new and material evidence was submitted. Service connection is also established for OSA secondary to service-connected PTSD.,Service connection is denied for various wrist, ankle, foot, eye, and headache disorders due to lack of competent medical evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for a right knee condition, hernia, and right wrist condition due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted. The claims for increased ratings for erectile dysfunction, left wrist tenosynovitis, and right wrist tenosynovitis are denied. The Veteran's claims for service connection for a respiratory disability, left ankle disability, right ankle disability, left foot neuropathy disability, and right foot neuropathy disability are remanded.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for a left hand and wrist disability, including second metacarpal degenerative joint disease and carpal tunnel syndrome, has been dismissed as the Veteran and his representative have withdrawn their appeal.

The Veteran's left and right wrist disabilities have been granted initial ratings of 10% each, effective November 15, 2010. The Veteran's sinusitis has not met the criteria for a compensable rating. The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder is rated at 50%.,An initial rating in excess of 10% for left and right wrist disabilities prior to November 24, 2014, and an initial rating in excess of 10% thereafter has been denied.

The Veteran's left ear hearing loss is granted service connection, but his right ear hearing loss and bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome are denied. The eye disorder claim is also denied.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of service connection for left ankle, bilateral wrist, and left shoulder disabilities due to insufficient evidence regarding functional loss or impairment.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings and service connection have been remanded by the Board. The appeals are related to his bilateral foot, gastrointestinal, right wrist, left inguinal, and left ankle disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development to verify in-service stressors and obtain VA examinations to assess the severity of his service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, bilateral wrist sprains, and knee conditions.

Posttraumatic stress disorder, right wrist strain (status-post proximal row carpectomy), and tinnitus have been granted service connection.,Lumbar degenerative disc disease, status-post L3-4 fusion has been granted service connection but denied for increased ratings.,A low back scar has been granted service connection but denied for increased ratings.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for increased ratings on all issues except for his claim of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and whether new and material evidence has been presented to reopen a claim of entitlement to service connection for PTSD. The claims are being remanded for further action.

The Veteran's back disorder was granted service connection. The remaining claims for various other disorders were denied.

The Veteran's tinnitus is granted as service connected. The left wrist and PTSD issues are remanded for further evaluation.

The Veteran's service connection claims were granted, and he was awarded evaluations for various conditions. The Board also found that some issues required further review.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for carpal tunnel syndrome of the left and right upper extremities are being remanded due to insufficient evidence from a 2016 examination.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions, including right knee degenerative changes, trigger finger in multiple fingers on his left hand, carpal tunnel syndrome in his left wrist, left wrist pain, and tinnitus. The reasons are that VA needs to obtain relevant medical records, provide new VA examinations or opinions regarding these conditions, and consider the Veteran's lay statements about his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder has been rated at 50 percent prior to December 27, 2018 and at 70 percent thereafter. The Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,For the period starting from December 27, 2018, the Veteran's service-connected major depressive disorder has been rated at 70 percent. The Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities which were considered static in nature reached a combined evaluation of 100 percent as of July 1, 2006. The Board found that the criteria for establishment of basic eligibility to Chapter 35 Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits were satisfied as of this date.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings are being remanded due to the need for additional VA medical examinations.,The TDIU claim is also being remanded as it is inextricably intertwined with the increased rating issues.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of October 5, 2012 for PTSD is granted. An evaluation of 100 percent for PTSD is granted from that date. The Veteran's TDIU claim is dismissed as his PTSD alone meets the schedular criteria for a 100% rating. SMC based on need for regular aid and attendance (A&A) is granted due to the Veteran's PTSD, which causes him to require daily supervision for activities of daily living.