The Veteran's left ring finger fracture is not service-connected, but numbness of the mouth resulting from inservice dental surgery is granted.
The deciding factor: Service connection was established for numbness of the mouth due to inservice jaw and mouth surgery as a secondary condition, resolving doubt in favor of the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- Left ring finger fracture, Numbness of the mouth due to inservice jaw and mouth surgery
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 7, 2016
- Citation
- 1600474
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 1600474.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected residuals of left long finger amputation and left ring finger fracture is remanded.,The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for the left leg below the knee amputation is also remanded.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, sleep apnea, and TDIU are remanded.,An opinion is needed to determine if the Veteran's left hand tingling, numbness, and loss of sensation were caused or aggravated by his service-connected conditions.,Another medical opinion is required to assess whether the Veteran's sleep apnea had its onset during service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for a rating in excess of 10 percent for residuals of left ring finger fracture and for a temporary total evaluation based on surgery and need for convalescence for residuals, fracture, left ring finger. The primary reasons were that the June 2009 surgery was not treatment for the service-connected left ring finger fracture and that the Veteran's hand disability is characterized by ankylosis of the left ring finger at the PIP joint.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the cases due to unclear relationship between the Veteran's service-connected left ring finger fracture and his need for convalescence following surgery. The issues are inextricably intertwined as they both pertain to the same disability period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for his left wrist and ring finger fractures are being remanded. The issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, is also being remanded due to the need for additional information regarding stressors.
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