Citation Nr: 22001554 Decision Date: 01/12/22 Archive Date: 01/12/22 DOCKET NO. 17-42 007 DATE: January 12, 2022 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, right hand (also claimed as arthritis of the hands) is granted. Entitlement to service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, left hand (also claimed as arthritis of the hands) for is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The Veteran's right hand carpal tunnel syndrome is etiologically related to his active service. 2. The Veteran's left hand carpal tunnel syndrome is etiologically related to his active service. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The criteria for entitlement to service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, right hand (also claimed as arthritis of the hands) have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303. 2. The criteria for entitlement to service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, left hand (also claimed as arthritis of the hands) have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty in the Marine Corps from September 1986 to July 1990 and the United States Army from February 1991 to April 2007, with service in Bosnia and Iraq. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a January 2014 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In September 2021, the Veteran testified at a Board videoconference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is included in the claims file. 1. Entitlement to service connection for right and left hand carpal tunnel syndrome is granted. For the following reasons, entitlement to service connection for right and left hand carpal tunnel syndrome is granted. Establishing service connection generally requires medical or, in certain circumstances, lay evidence of (1) a current disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a link between the claimed in-service disease or injury and the present disability. Romanowsky v. Shinseki, 26 Vet. App. 289, 293 (2013). When there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding any issue material to the determination of a matter, VA shall give the benefit of the doubt to the claimant. 38 U.S.C. § 5107; see also Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49, 53 (1990). Here, the Board finds that the Veteran has a current diagnosis of mild right and left (bilateral) carpal tunnel syndrome. See April 2013 Affiliated Neurologists Testing Records at 12. Thus, the first element of service connection is met. Next, review of the Veteran's claims file reveals that he served in Iraq. See April 2003 Military Personnel Files at 3. The Board finds the Veteran credible as to his reported direct exposure to burn pits in Balad and Kirkuk Iraq. See April 2007 DD-214; September 2021 Board Videoconference. The Board finds the injury described by the Veteran commensurate with the time, place, and circumstances of his service, specifically his military occupational specialty (MOS) as a petroleum supply specialist. See 38 U.S.C. § 1154(a). The Veteran was also stationed in Fort Lewis, Washington. See April 2003 Military Personnel Records. Fort Lewis is a known Superfund site for having buried over 1,000 drums containing trichloroethylene (TCE). See United States Environmental Protection Agency, Superfund Site: Fort Lewis Logistics Center, www.epa.gov, https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.cleanup&id=1001131 (Last visited January 4, 2022). The remaining question is whether the Veteran's current bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome is related to his in-service exposure to burn pits while stationed in Balad and Kirkuk Iraq. The Board finds that the evidence supports such a conclusion. Specifically, the November 2021 medical opinion from Dr. C.N.B. MD, who opined that it is at least 90 percent probable that the Veteran's current carpal tunnel syndrome was caused by his exposure to toxins (TCE) while in service, noting the Veteran's exposure to burn pits and his service at Fort Lewis. See November 2021 Medical Opinion. Dr. C.N.B. reviewed the Veteran's military and medical records and provided medical literature to support his findings. In light of the private medical opinion showing a medical nexus between the Veteran's current diagnosis of bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and his past exposure to burn pits and TCE while stationed at Fort Lewis, the Board finds that the evidence is in at least in equipoise regarding the question of whether the Veteran's current bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome was incurred in service. For these reasons, and resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran, the Board finds that the criteria for service connection for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome has been met. See 38 U.S.C. § 5107 (b); 38 C.F.R. § 3.102; Gilbert, 1 Vet. App. at 49. The claims are granted. A. C. MACKENZIE Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board David B. Scheirich, Associate 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.