Citation Nr: 21024742
Decision Date: 04/26/21	Archive Date: 04/26/21

DOCKET NO. 15-19 018
DATE: April 26, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for left elbow ulnar neuropathy is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from June 1977 to October 1981 and from January 2005 to November 2005.  The Veteran also had additional periods of service with the Army National Guard.

The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge in January 2018.  A copy of the transcript is of record.

This case was initially before the Board in June 2018, when the issue listed above was remanded for further development.  In a December 2019 decision, the Board denied the claim for entitlement to an increased rating for his left elbow ulnar neuropathy.  Thereafter, the Veteran appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court).  In a July 2020 Joint Motion for Remand (JMR), the Court vacated the December 2019 decision and remanded it back to the Board. The claim is now again before the Board for further adjudication.

1. Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for left elbow ulnar neuropathy is remanded.

Pursuant to the July 2020 JMR, the Board will remand for further development the Veteran’s claim for entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for left elbow ulnar neuropathy.  In the JMR, the Court referenced information from a March 2019 Cervical Spine VA examination.  The March 2019 examination noted neurological symptoms involving the left upper, middle, and lower radicular group.  The examiner noted moderate impairment of the left side.  At a December 2018 Peripheral Nerves Conditions VA examination, the examiner diagnosed mild incomplete paralysis of the ulnar nerve but acknowledged exam evidence of separate cervical radiculopathy, which was specifically noted to be a separate issue from ulnar neuropathy at the elbow. 

The Board finds that an additional examination is warranted to determine if there has been an increase in the Veteran’s service-connected ulnar radiculopathy, as it is unclear whether the increased severity of symptoms noted in the March 2019 VA examination are pertinent to the ulnar neuropathy currently before the Board and to what extent any identified symptoms are instead attributable to an unrelated disability. 

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination to determine the nature and severity of his service-connected left elbow ulnar neuropathy.  The Veteran’s claims file should be provided to the examiner.  The examiner must obtain a detailed clinical history from the Veteran and must note all pertinent pathology found on examination in the report of the evaluation.  

The examiner must note the severity level specific to his left elbow ulnar neuropathy and must discuss all symptomatology attributable to the service-connected left elbow ulnar neuropathy. If any symptoms are attributable instead to an entirely separate disability, those symptoms must be identified and differentiated from any symptoms related to the Veteran’s service-connected left elbow ulnar neuropathy. 

Any testing deemed necessary should be performed.  The examiner must provide a full description of all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating Veteran’s disability under the rating criteria.  

 

 

Caroline B. Fleming

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A. M. Clark, Counsel

The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.