The Veteran's claims for service connection of various hand and finger disabilities, as well as an upper back disability, have been denied. The Board found no current evidence of these conditions.
The deciding factor: There is no objective medical evidence supporting the presence of any of the claimed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Fingers herpetic felon, Right thumb disability, Left thumb disability, Right index finger disability, Left index finger disability, Right long finger disability, Left long finger disability, Right ring finger disability, Left ring finger disability, Right little finger disability, Left little finger disability, Upper back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2026
- Citation
- A26024453
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 A26024453.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a right little finger disability and remanded the claim of service connection for a left shoulder disability due to incomplete records.
- Granted
The Veteran's hair loss and some other conditions are granted service connection, while the right hand disability is denied. The Veteran also has a new rating for his low back condition.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran was not unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation prior to January 1, 2017 due to his service-connected right little finger disability. The evidence showed he had multiple nonservice-connected disabilities and occasional right hand impairment but could still perform employment duties.
- Denied
The Veteran's right long finger disability is currently rated at 10 percent, the maximum schedular rating available under Diagnostic Code 5229.,The Veteran's right ring finger disability is currently rated at noncompensable (zero percent), which is the maximum schedular rating available under Diagnostic Code 5230.,The scars on the neck and upper back area are not productive of visible or palpable tissue loss, gross distortion, or asymmetry. Therefore, they do not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under Diagnostic Code 7800.
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