{"id":"alj-H208121-2025-09-08","awcc_number":"H208121","decision_date":"2025-09-08","opinion_type":"alj","claimant_name":"Zuleyka Pichardo","employer_name":"Prairie Grove Elementary School","title":"PICHARDO VS. PRAIRIE GROVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AWCC# H208121 September 08, 2025","outcome":"denied","outcome_keywords":["granted:1","denied:4"],"injury_keywords":["thoracic","knee","back","neck","lumbar","shoulder","fracture"],"pdf_url":"https://www.labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/PICHARDO_ZULEYKA_H208121_20250908.pdf","source_index_url":"https://labor.arkansas.gov/workers-comp/awcc-opinions/administrative-law-judge-opinions/","filename":"PICHARDO_ZULEYKA_H208121_20250908.pdf","text_length":25062,"full_text":"BEFORE THE ARKANSAS WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION \n \n WCC NO. H208121 \n \nZULEYKA PICHARDO, Employee CLAIMANT \n \nPRAIRIE GROVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, Employer RESPONDENT \n \nARKANSAS SCHOOL BOARDS ASSN., Carrier RESPONDENT \n \n \n \n OPINION FILED SEPTEMBER 8, 2025 \n \nHearing   before   ADMINISTRATIVE   LAW   JUDGE   ERIC   PAUL   WELLS   in   Springdale, \nWashington County, Arkansas. \n \nClaimant represented by EVELYN E. BROOKS, Attorney at Law, Fayetteville, Arkansas. \n \nRespondents represented by JAMES A. ARNOLD II, Attorney at Law, Fort Smith, Arkansas. \n \n STATEMENT OF THE CASE \n \n On June  10,  2025,  the  above  captioned  claim  came  on  for  a  hearing  at  Springdale, \nArkansas.   A pre-hearing conference was conducted on August 26, 2024, and an amended Pre-\nhearing Order was  filed on April 15, 2025.   A copy of the Pre-hearing Order has been marked \nCommission's Exhibit No. 1 and made a part of the record without objection. \n At the pre-hearing conference the parties agreed to the following stipulations: \n 1. The Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission has jurisdiction of this claim. \n 2. The   relationship   of   employee-employer-carrier   existed   between   the   parties on \nNovember 4, 2022. \n 3. The respondents have controverted this claim in its entirety. \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-2- \n 4. The claimant was earning sufficient wages to entitle her to compensation at the weekly \nrates  of  $245.00  for  temporary  total  disability  benefits  and  $184.00  for  permanent  partial \ndisability benefits. \n 5. The claimant reserves all other issues. \n By agreement of the parties the issues to litigate are limited to the following: \n 1.  Whether  Claimant  sustained  a  compensable  injury  to  her  thoracic  outlet  resulting  in \nthoracic outlet syndrome. \n 2. Whether Claimant is entitled to medical treatment as recommended by Dr. Christopher \nDougherty, including treatment for thoracic outlet syndrome. \n 3.  Whether  Claimant  is  entitled  to  temporary  total  disability  benefits  from  October  31, \n2024, to a date yet to be determined. \n 4. Whether Claimant’s attorney is entitled to an attorney’s fee. \n The claimant's contentions are as follows: \n“Claimant contends she is entitled to treatment as recommended by \nDr.  Dougherty  for  her  injuries  sustained  on  11/4/2022,  including \ntreatment for thoracic outlet syndrome.” \n \n The respondents’ contentions are as follows: \n“All appropriate benefits have been paid.” \n \n The claimant in this matter is a 38-year-old female who alleges to have sustained thoracic \noutlet syndrome in an incident that she alleges to have occurred on or about November 4, 2022. \nThe  claimant  was  employed  by  the  respondents  to  prepare  meals  for  school  children.  On  direct \nexamination the claimant described her alleged incident as follows: \nQ And what was your job there? \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-3- \nA I  was  serving  food  to  the  students.  I  was  also  preparing \nfood  for  the  students  and  cleaning  the  areas  where  the  food  was \nserved. \n \nQ And what happened on November 4\nth\n of 2022? \n \nA I  was  serving  lunch,  some  food  during  lunch.  One  of  my \nfriends handed me a pizza tray. I put the pizza tray in the warmer. \nSo when  I  was turning around,  I  actually slipped and  I fell on my \nknee.  When  I  was  trying  to  hold  on  to  something  with  my  left \nhand, on the sting table that they had, and tried to get up, there was \na police officer. He was a co-worker. His name was Paredes and he \ntried  to  help  me  up.  So  I  went  to  the  office,  to  the  manager, \nDanielle.  I  actually  went  with  the  officer  and  he  helped  me \ninterpret. \n \nQ Okay. Just a minute. I want to go back for a moment to the \nway  you  fell.  You  said  you  fell  onto  your  knee  first.  Which  knee \nwas that? \n \nA It was the right knee. \n \nQ Okay.  And  after  you  hit  the  floor  on  your  right  knee,  then \nwhat happened to your body? \n \n THE  INTERPRETER:  Your  Honor,  may  the  interpreter \ninquire? \n \n THE COURT: You may. \n \n THE WITNESS: Yes. So when I fell and as I was falling, I \nwas  like  trying  to  hold  onto  something.  I  put  some  force  out  and \nthen I hold onto a sting table. \n \n THE INTERPRETER: And the interpreter asked, “What is \na sting table?” It’s a serving table. It is a table where you serve the \nfood. \n \n THE COURT: Thank you for that explanation. \n \nQ [BY MS BROOKS]: And how did you land? \n \nA I slipped. \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-4- \nQ And  did  you  fall  onto  your  back  or  onto  your  side?  How \ndid you land? \n \nA I fell on my back. \n \n As seen in Claimant’s Exhibit 1, page 1, the claimant initially complained of low back, \nupper back, and right knee pain. Over time, the claimant’s complaints of pain began to change. \nShe began to complain of neck pain and upper extremity pain in a physical therapy report dated \nJune 5, 2023. Clearly, the medical records show that the claimant’s difficulties revolved around \nher low back, upper back, and right knee throughout the majority of the first year following her \nalleged fall.  \n In   the   current   hearing   before   the   Commission   the   claimant   is   only   alleging \ncompensability  of  thoracic  outlet  syndrome.  While  medical  records  detail  other  issues,  thoracic \noutlet syndrome is the only issue germane to this hearing. \n The  claimant  was  referred  by  Dr.  Christopher  Dougherty  to  Dr.  James  Counce,  who \nperformed  surgery  on  the  claimant  for  thoracic  outlet  syndrome  on  October  31,  2024,  at \nWashington Regional Medical Center. \n Dr.  Counce  underwent  a  deposition  that  was  taken  on  April  1,  2025.  In  that  deposition \nDr. Counce gave deposition testimony that included a description of thoracic outlet syndrome as \nfollows: \nQ Tell us about thoracic outlet syndrome. I’ve been doing this \nfor  47  years  or  so  now,  and  I  can  count  probably  on  two  or  three \nfingers the number of cases I have had regarding that condition.  \n \nQ [SIC] Thoracic    outlet    syndrome    is    a    compression \nsyndrome  associated  with  either  thoracic  inlet  or  thoracic  outlet, \nwhich  is  this  small  space  where  structures  are  traveling  from  the \nneck to the chest or from the chest to the neck, are compressed by \nfirst  rib  muscles  and  other  things,  and  it  can  cause  a  variety  of \nproblems:  pain,  swelling.  It  can  cause  arterial  aneurisms;  it  can \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-5- \ncause  venous  occlusion;  it  can  cause  neuralgia  from  these  nerve \ntrunks  that  are  coming  from  the  neck  down  to  the  arm.  It’s  a \nsyndrome; it’s not a disease and so it’s hard to assign a single \nbloodwork or single test. It’s more a constellation of symptoms \nand findings and lack of findings, also, that go with thoracic outlet \nsyndrome. \n \nQ Am I correct in understanding that thoracic outlet syndrome \ncan  either  be  due  to  trauma  or  can  be  due  to  congenital  or \nanatomical variants? \n \nA That’s correct. \n \nAs an administrative law judge, I have seen multiple injuries of all sorts and kinds over the last \nnearly  18  years;  however,  this  is  my  first  thoracic  outlet  syndrome  case  to  the  best  of  my \nrecollection. Upon review of Dr. Counce’s, Dr. Dougherty’s, and the claimant’s testimony, as \nwell  as  other  medical  evidence  admitted,  I  feel  that  I  have  a  firm  grip on the  syndrome  and  its \neffects. It appears that in layman’s terms, much like a water hose being kinked inside the body, \nthis syndrome, while not affecting the flow of water, affects the flow of blood and nerve signals \nto  the  upper  extremities  of  the  human  body.  This  syndrome,  apparently,  can  be  brought  on \nacutely  through  trauma  or  can  be  brought  on  by  the  presence  of  anatomical  anomaly.  Just  as  a \nwater hose kinks and prevents the movement of water, this condition prevents the movement of \nblood flow and nerve signals. \n Dr.  Counce  was  questioned  in  his  deposition  by  the  respondents’  attorney  about  the \nhistory the claimant provided to him regarding her injury as follows: \nQ When  you  initially  saw  this  patient,  what  history  did  you \nget from her? \n \nA What  I  have  recorded  is  she  was  37  years  old  at  the  time \nthat I saw her and she fell at work two years ago and had to catch \nherself  on  her  left  arm  and  since  then  she  has  had  pain.  She  has \nweakness,  numbness,  tingling  in  the  left  arm,  and  discoloration \nwhen she raises her left arm. She has – she had undergone physical \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-6- \ntherapy and extensive imaging workup. An MRI, the chest showed \nmild or moderate narrowing of the left subclavian vein with venous \ncollaterals underlying the clavicle in the arms-up position, and she \nwas  referred  to  us  because – and  I  have  forgotten  who  it  was  that \nreferred  her  to  us  because  they  thought  she  had  thoracic  outlet \nsyndrome. \n \nQ I  believe  that  was  Dr.  Dougherty  who  she  had  last  seen \nbefore she saw you. \n \nA Okay. \n \nQ The  claim  is  that  this  thoracic  outlet  syndrome  arose  as  a \nresult of the fall that occurred. Do you have  an opinion as to that, \nother than relying on the history she gave you? In other words, was \nthere  anything  about  her  physical  findings,  either  on  examination \nor during the operative procedure, which suggests that it had been \ndue to trauma as opposed to something else? \n \nA No. \n \nQ So,   any   opinion   regarding   work-relatedness   would   be \ndependent on the history that she gave you? \n \nA That’s correct. \n \nMedical records submitted into evidence do not support the claimant’s claims of left arm \ndifficulties  since  her  initial  November  4,  2022,  incident.  It  was  nearly  a  year  after  that  incident \nthat  the  claimant  reported  any  difficulties  that  did  not  revolve  around  her  right  knee,  lumbar  or \nthoracic spine. The claimant in this matter gave cross examination testimony regarding previous \nphysical issues she had encountered in life. Upon my review of the claimant’s testimony that \nfollows, I find the claimant to be either a very poor historian or untruthful to the Commission. \nHearing Transcript, page 14 line 17 to page 15 line 24 \nQ Now,  before  you  had  this  accident  in  November  of  2022, \ndo you recall having any problems with your back? \n \nA I don’t remember. \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-7- \nQ And  do  you  remember  in  your  deposition  when  the  other \nattorney  asked  you  if  you  had  ever  had  any  problems  with  your \nback or with your neck before? \n \nA I don’t remember very well. \n \nQ All  right.  But  if  you  had  been  asked  that  question,  do  you \nrecall  any  problems  that  you  had  had  before  with  your  back  or \nneck? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ So in your medical records introduced by the Respondents, \nit looks like in March of 2018, you had some low back pain with a \nlittle pain going down maybe your right buttock and your right leg. \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay.  And  did  you  have  any – do  you  recall  having  any \nongoing treatment after early 2018 for any kind of back problems? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay. And there is one record in the Respondents’ Exhibit \nfrom  May  1\nst\n of  2020  that  mentions  your  neck.  Do  you  recall \nhaving any problems with your neck? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay. And do you recall having any sort of testing for your \nneck or for your low back? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay. So do you remember having any problems with your \nfeet prior to this accident? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay. So do you recall going to a doctor about your feet? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 16 line 24 to page 17 line 9 \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-8- \nQ Okay. That wasn’t my question. My question was do you \nrecall  telling  me  in  your  deposition  that  Dr.  Kempson  had  never \ntreated you for your back, your neck, your shoulders, anything like \nthat? Do you recall that? \n \nA No. I don’t remember that. \n \nQ Okay.  Well,  the  Judge  has  got  your  deposition  transcript \nand he can see what you told me. \n \n What  you  actually  told  these  doctors  was  that  you  had \nnever had any problems with your arm or shoulder or back prior to \nthis fall at work on November 4, 2022; correct? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 19 line 5 to page 19 line 13 \nQ [BY MR. ARNOLD]: You already testified here today that \nyou didn’t have any neck or left shoulder pain before November 4\nth\n \nof 2022; is that correct? \n \nA I don’t remember saying that. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Okay.  You  were  treated  in  2020  by  Dr.  Kempson,  your \nfamily doctor, for neck  pain, left posterior pain,  muscle spasms in \nyour neck and over the left trapezius muscle. Do you recall that? \n \nA No. I don’t remember that. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 19 line 22 to page 19 line 25 \nQ [BY  MR.  ARNOLD]:  Do  you  recall  seeing  a  doctor  on \nOctober  4,  2022,  and  preparing  a  diagram  which  said  you  were \nhaving pain in your bilateral shoulders? \n \nA I don’t remember drawing anything like that. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 21 line 25 to page 22 line 5 \nQ Left arm. Okay. And then when you saw the doctor next on \nNovember  16\nth\n of  2022,  do  you  recall  what  complaints  that  you \ngave them and what parts of your body they were evaluating? \n \nA I don’t remember the dates as you are saying them because \nI don’t know which doctor I saw. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 22 line 24 to page 22 line 25 \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-9- \nQ They didn’t do X-rays of your knee? \n \nA I don’t remember. \n \nHearing Transcript, page 27 line 11 to page 28 line 8 \nQ I  only  find  one  note  in  all  the  records  from  Dr.  Kempson \nthat  references  any  problems  with  your  neck  and  that  was  from \nMay  1\nst\n of  2020.  Do  you  ever  recall  having  actual  treatment  for \nyour neck by Dr. Kempson? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nQ Do you know what kind of a doctor Dr. Kory Miskin is? \n \nA The thing is it has been several years, so no, no. I don’t \nremember. \n \nQ Okay.  Well,  on  Page  32  of the  Respondents’  Exhibit,  it \nindicates that your family doctor is referring you to Dr. Miskin for \nbilateral  foot  pain.  Do  you  ever  remember  seeing  Dr.  Miskin  for \nfoot pain? \n \nA I don’t remember. \n \nQ Because  there  are  no  records  associated  with  this  one \ndocument on Page 34 of the Respondents’ Exhibit, nothing at all \nexcept this one page, that purports to be from Dr. Miskin. \n \nA I don’t have any knowledge of that. \n \nQ Okay. Because it says the date of service was October 4\nth\n of \n2022,  which  was  a  month  before  your  fall  at  work.  Do  you  recall \nseeing a foot doctor around a month before your fall? \n \nA No. I don’t remember. \n \nUpon  review  of  the  medical  evidence  submitted  by  both  the  claimant  and  the  respondents,  it \nappears that the claimant’s testimony differs greatly from the medical evidence submitted into \nthe record. \n Dr. Counce, who performed the claimant’s thoracic outlet syndrome surgery discussed \nhis findings of an old fracture to the claimant’s first rib and scarring in that same area as follows: \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-10- \nQ What  is  the  significance  of  there  being  an  old  fracture  in \nthat  area?  Does  that  play  any  role  in  trying  to  determine  whether \nher thoracic outlet syndrome is related to the trauma that fractured \nthe rib or otherwise? \n \nA It’s just a comment on the findings. It’s not related to the \nchronology  of  anything,  and  I’m  not  sure  that  there  is  any \nsignificance in it other than that’s what I felt, that at some time in \nthe past she had a first rib fracture. \n \nQ Did  you  necessarily  associate  that  with  this  fall  that  she \ndescribed to you? \n \nA No, sir. \n \nQ Was there something  about the fracture of the first rib that \ncaused   the   compression   that   produced   this   constellation   of \nsymptoms? \n \nA There  wasn’t  anything  that  I  could  identify  about  the \nfracture that was there; just commenting on the fact that it was not \npristine  up  there,  like  there  had  not  ever  been  any  trauma.  There \nwas clearly some trauma at some point and time. I don’t know \nwhen or where or whether I can directly attribute it to her thoracic \noutlet syndrome. \n \nQ Was  there  any  other  scarring  in  the  area?  In  other  words, \nwhat was causing the compression? \n \nA Well, the – what she has more than anything that was least \ndemonstrable was compression of her subclavian vein here. Okay? \n \nQ Okay. \n \nA That’s compressed by the first rib in various provocative \nmaneuvers;  for  instance,  in  an  MRI  when  she  raised  her  arm  over \nher head. It’s also indicated in the MRI but the ... so you do two \nthings  in  this  operation  in  order  to  relieve  that.  One  is  to  remove \nthe  first  rib,  which  opens  up  the  thoracic  outlet;  and  the  second \nthing is if there is a scar surrounding the subclavian vein then you \nrelease this scar, that’s what a venolousness is is the liceis of this \nscar  round  the  vein  to  allow  the  vein  to  flow  without  restriction \nfrom  a  scar  that  might  have  occurred  secondary  to  whatever  the \ncause of the thoracic outlet syndrome was. \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-11- \n Dr.  Counce  was  further  questioned about  his  thoughts  on  the  cause  of  the  scarring  and \nultimately the claimant’s thoracic outlet syndrome as follows: \nQ Do you have an opinion as to what caused the scarring? \n \nA Well,  as  to  the  direct  cause,  if – all  I  can  say  it  was  my \nopinion  that  she  had  thoracic  outlet  syndrome.  As  to  the  cause  of \nher thoracic outlet syndrome, I’m not sure that I can tell you what I \nthink is the exact cause of her thoracic outlet syndrome or what led \nto her thoracic outlet syndrome. \n \nQ If she sustained trauma in the fall that she described to you, \nwould  you  have  expected  the  trauma  to  be  serious  enough  that  she \nwould have complained of some new or different symptoms? \n \nA I’m not sure that I understand exactly what you are asking \nthere. \n \nQ Well,  we  are  trying  to  determine  the  extent  to  which  or \nwhether,  if  at  all,  this  fall  has  anything  to  do  with  this  thoracic \noutlet  syndrome.  If  the  scarring  that  you  found – am  I  correct  in \nunderstanding there was some scarring? \n \nA That’s correct. \n \nQ If it was due to trauma that occurred at the time of this fall, \nwould  you  have  expected  that  trauma  to  be  sufficient  to  cause \nsymptoms?  \n \nA Well,  once  again,  you  know,  all  I  can  do  is  refer  to  her \nhistory  and  chronology  that  she  was  pain  free  prior  to  the  accident \nand  then  had  a  lot  of  pain  afterwards  and  that  there  was  indeed \nsome  findings  there  that  she  had  previous  trauma  with  an  old  heal \nfracture  and  some  scarring  around  the  subclavian  vein.  Do  I  think \nthat  if  the  fall  occurred  as  she  described  it,  that  the  findings  that  I \nhad  were  consistent,  yes,  I  mean  I – the  findings  that  I  saw  could \nhave been caused by old trauma. \n \nQ Could it have been caused by the old trauma that caused the \nrib fracture? \n \nA Could have been. \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-12- \nQ If  she  had  fractured  this  first  rib  in  this  fall  that  she \ndescribed   to   you   would   you   have   expected   her   to   have   had \nsignificant symptoms in that area that she had not had previously? \n \nA Yes, I would expect that if she had broken her first rib, that \nshe would have had symptoms from that. \n \nQ And where would those symptoms have been? \n \nA Well,  I  would  expect  her  to  have  symptoms  in  and  around \nthe  base  of  her  neck  up  to  the  top  her  of  her  scapula  down  to  her \nshoulder and down to her arm. \n \nQ And  would  those  have  occurred  immediately  or  within  a \nmatter  of  days  after  the  incident  if,  in  fact,  the  rib  fracture  was \ncaused at the time of this fall? \n \nA Well, I’m not sure – I  would  expect  her  to  have  symptoms \nand  would  expect  her  to  have – I  would  expect  her  to  have  initial \nsymptoms,   but   I   would   expect   her   also   to   have   progressive \nsymptoms,  also.  So  if  you  are  asking  when  would  the  onset  of \nsymptoms  be,  I  would  expect  that  some  onset  of  symptoms  would \nbe  immediately  after  whatever  the  trauma  was  that  caused  the  first \nrib  fracture  and  then  for – the  symptoms  probably  would  be \nprogressive from there. \n \nQ Did  I  correctly  understand  you  to  say  that  she  denied  that \nshe had these symptoms prior to the fall? \n \nA If I said that, I didn’t mean to say that. What I meant to say \nwas that  from her history she told me that the onset was two years \nago. Okay? I don’t think – I don’t recall directly asking her if she \nwas  normal  or  had  no  symptoms  prior  to  that  time.  All  I  know  is \nthat she says the onset of symptoms was two years ago. \n \nQ And  you  had  to  accept  that;  you  were  not  undertaking  to \ncheck the veracity of her history? \n \nA That’s correct. \n \nIn  order  to  prove  a  compensable  injury  as  the  result  of  a  specific  incident  that  is \nidentifiable by time and place of occurrence, a claimant must establish by a preponderance of the \nevidence  (1)  an  injury  arising  out  of  and  in  the  course  of  employment;  (2)  the  injury  caused \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-13- \ninternal or external harm to the body which required medical services or resulted in disability or \ndeath;  (3)  medical  evidence  supported  by  objective  findings  establishing  an  injury;  and  (4)  the \ninjury was caused by a specific incident identifiable by time and place of occurrence. Odd Jobs \nand More v. Reid, 2011 Ark. App. 450, 384 S.W. 3d 630. \n The claimant’s current claim before the Commission is limited in scope to her allegations \nof  thoracic  outlet  syndrome.  It  is  clear  that  some  objective  medical evidence of thoracic  outlet \nsyndrome  exists  from  both  the  deposition  and  operative  report  of  Dr.  Counce.  Those  findings \nwould include an old first rib fracture and scarring around the claimant’s nerves in that portion of \nher  chest.  However,  I  do  not  find  the  claimant  can  prove  a  causal  connection  between  the \nobjective medical findings and the injuries she alleges to have occurred on November 4, 2022, at \nwhich time she alleges to have fallen to her knees and then to her backside. It was just short of a \nyear before medical records indicate the claimant began to complain of difficulties that I believe \ncould  be  associated  with  thoracic  outlet  syndrome.  Even  those  complaints  are  hard  to  believe \ngiven the claimant’s poor ability to remember medical problems or conditions in her past. The \nclaimant  is  not  able  to  prove  by  a  preponderance  of  the  evidence  that  she  sustained  a \ncompensable injury in the form of thoracic outlet syndrome on or about November 4, 2022. \n From a review of the record as a whole, to include medical reports, documents, and other \nmatters properly before the Commission, and having had an opportunity to hear the testimony of \nthe witness and to observe her demeanor, the following findings of fact  and conclusions of law \nare made in accordance with A.C.A. §11-9-704: \n \n \n \n\nPichardo – H208121 \n \n-14- \n FINDINGS OF FACT & CONCLUSIONS OF LAW \n 1.  The  stipulations  agreed  to  by  the  parties  at  the  pre-hearing  conference  conducted  on \nAugust  26,  2024,  and  contained  in  aa  amended Pre-hearing  Order  filed April  15,  2025,  are \nhereby accepted as fact. \n 2. The claimant has failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that she sustained \na compensable injury in the form of thoracic outlet syndrome. \n 3. The claimant has failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence her entitlement to \nmedical   treatment   by   Dr.   Christopher   Dougherty,   including   treatment   for   thoracic   outlet \nsyndrome. \n 4. The claimant has failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence her entitlement to \ntemporary total disability benefits from October 31, 2024, to a date yet to be determined. \n 5. The claimant has failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that her attorney \nis entitled to an attorney’s fee in this matter. \n ORDER \nPursuant  to  the  above  findings  and  conclusions,  I  have  no  alternative  but  to  deny  this \nclaim in its entirety. \nIf  they  have  not  already  done  so,  the  respondents  are  directed  to  pay  the  court  reporter, \nVeronica Lane, fees and expenses within thirty (30) days of receipt of the invoice. \n IT IS SO ORDERED. \n \n                                ____________________________                                               \n       HONORABLE ERIC PAUL WELLS \n       ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE","preview":"BEFORE THE ARKANSAS WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSION WCC NO. H208121 ZULEYKA PICHARDO, Employee CLAIMANT PRAIRIE GROVE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, Employer RESPONDENT ARKANSAS SCHOOL BOARDS ASSN., Carrier RESPONDENT OPINION FILED SEPTEMBER 8, 2025 Hearing before ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE ERIC PAUL WELLS in Springdale, Washington...","fetched_at":"2026-05-19T22:36:07.758Z","links":{"html":"/opinions/alj-H208121-2025-09-08","pdf":"https://www.labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/PICHARDO_ZULEYKA_H208121_20250908.pdf","source_publisher":"https://labor.arkansas.gov/workers-comp/awcc-opinions/administrative-law-judge-opinions/"}}