BVA decisions by condition
Hand impairment: BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2017 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a hand impairment issue in 5,278 decisions. It granted the hand impairment issue in 9.4% of them, below the 19.4% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 31.3%, and remanded it in 58.8%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 23.2% were granted.
Decisions
5,278
2017–2026
Granted
9.4%
All conditions: 19.4%
Granted on the merits
23.2%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
58.8%
Denied: 31.3%
Hand impairment outcomes by year
| Year | Issues decided | Granted | Denied | Remanded | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 406 | 6.7% | 31.5% | 56.7% | 5.2% |
| 2018 | 655 | 4.3% | 35.0% | 58.2% | 2.6% |
| 2019 | 746 | 6.6% | 30.8% | 61.3% | 1.3% |
| 2020 | 738 | 8.3% | 34.8% | 56.0% | 0.9% |
| 2021 | 709 | 8.9% | 28.9% | 60.6% | 1.6% |
| 2022 | 762 | 8.0% | 23.6% | 67.6% | 0.8% |
| 2023 | 858 | 8.5% | 27.2% | 62.9% | 1.4% |
| 2024 | 792 | 9.7% | 29.4% | 60.5% | 0.4% |
| 2025 | 787 | 14.6% | 37.7% | 47.1% | 0.5% |
| 2026 | 334 | 18.3% | 34.1% | 46.4% | 1.2% |
Each row counts issues (each condition the Board decided), so the shares add up to 100%. Other: dismissed, withdrawn or no clear outcome. Years with fewer than 50 issues are left out.
Evidence in granted and denied hand impairment decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the hand impairment issue on the merits when the decision mentioned it, compared with decisions that did not. These are associations, not causes, and evidence is recorded per decision, not per issue.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positive nexus opinion | 614 | 55.3% | 16.5% | +38.8 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 502 | 50.3% | 18.7% | +31.6 pts |
| Treating physician opinion | 183 | 50.5% | 21.9% | +28.6 pts |
| Buddy statement | 165 | 38.8% | 22.7% | +16.1 pts |
| Claimed as secondary | 692 | 34.4% | 21.9% | +12.5 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 1,180 | 31.9% | 19.8% | +12.1 pts |
| Combat service | 288 | 34.5% | 22.5% | +12.0 pts |
| Lay statement | 4,341 | 23.2% | 23.2% | +0.0 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 75.1% of the decisions that granted hand impairment.
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 49.4% of grants and 13.5% of denials.
Negative evidence in the record
An unfavorable exam or a negative nexus opinion often sits in the same record as favorable evidence, and the Board weighs them against each other. So these rows show how often hand impairment was still granted when the record contained the negative item, not that the item helped.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative nexus opinion | 2,659 | 22.7% | 23.8% | −1.0 pts |
| Unfavorable VA exam | 3,798 | 22.5% | 26.1% | −3.6 pts |
Why the Board granted or denied hand impairment
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established74
- Continuity of symptomatology since service22
- Caused by the service-connected disability15
- Criteria for service connection met11
- Service connection established11
- In-service injury documented6
- Evidence evenly balanced5
- Service connection granted4
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis312
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis178
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim174
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service143
- Service records negative or silent138
- Current diagnosis established128
- Criteria for service connection not met36
- No continuity of symptomatology34
Numbers are decisions that gave the reason. Reasons are short phrases extracted by AI from each decision; common wordings of the same reason are grouped. Benefit of the doubt is reported above.
Recent hand impairment decisions
Granted
In-service injury alleged (assault with metal rod); Private medical records show old injury, instability, and pain; Fellow veteran corroborates in-service assault; Pain alone can constitute functional impairment/disability; VA examiner opinion found inadequate (conflated chronicity of care with continuity of symptoms)
Current disability: Degenerative arthritis of the right hand.; In-service event: Laceration of the medial joint of the fourth digit on the right hand on August 22, 1977.; Nexus: Evidence nearly equal; doubt resolved in veteran's favor due to credible lay testimony regarding MOS duties and symptom continuity, despite lack of chronic findings in service records.
Current diagnosis of mild degenerative changes and deformity; In-service fracture documented in STRs; Evidence in equipoise, doubt resolved in veteran's favor
Denied
No current diagnosis of bilateral hand condition; Normal physical examination findings; Claims file silent for hand complaints
Not chronic in service; Did not manifest to compensable degree; No continuity of symptomatology; No nexus to service; VA examiner opined less likely than not
No diagnosis of current disability; No in-service manifestation; No etiological relationship to service
Rules that apply to hand impairment claims
- 38 CFR 3.303
Principles of service connection
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.310
Secondary service connection and aggravation
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.102
Reasonable doubt (benefit of the doubt)
Read it in VA Law Explorer
Research your hand impairment case
Narrow by year, judge, evidence or secondary condition, read the decisions, and export a research memo.
How these numbers are calculated
- Rates count decisions in which the Board decided a hand impairment issue, by the outcome of that issue. Other issues in the same decision can have different outcomes.
- “Granted on the merits” leaves out remands and dismissals. “All conditions” is the grant share across every condition issue in the data.
- The data comes from CaseScribe's AI extraction of public BVA decisions (2017–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.