The Board denied ratings higher than 20 percent for cervical strain and right carpal tunnel syndrome on an extraschedular basis, finding that the Veteran's symptoms were adequately addressed by the applicable diagnostic codes and did not show exceptional or unusual disability picture with related factors such as marked interference with employment or frequent periods of hospitalization.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran’s cervical strain and right carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms were adequately represented by the schedular 20 percent ratings, and there was no evidence to support an extraschedular rating due to their collective impact on his ability to work.
- Claimed conditions
- Cervical strain, Right carpal tunnel syndrome
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- February 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19111542
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,569 · Granted: 26% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19111542.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for an initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for cervical strain, service connection for left leg pain (claimed as joint pain), and service connection for a left ear hearing condition are being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for cervical strain, low back disability, bilateral upper extremity peripheral nerve disability, and bilateral lower extremity peripheral nerve disability. The conditions are related to the Veteran's active service.
- Granted
Service connection for PTSD, to include depression is granted.,Service connection for blisters of bilateral feet is denied.,Service connection for cervical strain is denied.,Service connection for headaches is denied.,Service connection for right shoulder rotator cuff injury is denied.,Service connection for chest injury and lumbar strain are remanded.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for right carpal tunnel syndrome is denied as the award was granted in a separate claim filed after the initial increase rating appeal.
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