Shoulder decisions — 2025

The Board denied service connection for a left knee condition and granted an initial rating of 30 percent for migraine headaches, while denying increased ratings for lumbosacral strain with thoracolumbar strain, right shoulder strain, left ankle lateral collateral ligament sprain, and right knee strain.

The veteran withdrew all pending appeals, and the Board dismissed the appeals.

The Board denied service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, a right shoulder condition, tinnitus, hypertension, a right hip condition, bilateral knee conditions, and radiculopathy of the bilateral lower extremities as there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's military service.

The Board granted service connection for right hip, neck, left knee, and left shoulder disabilities but denied service connection for a left hip disability, back disability, PCOS, and bilateral hearing loss.

The appeal for service connection for inguinal hernia, hypertension, left shoulder condition, and vision impairment was dismissed due to untimely filing of the notice of disagreement. The claims for headaches, OSA, IBS, and bilateral hearing loss were denied as there is no evidence linking these conditions to military service.

The Board remands the claim for a new VA examination to address compliance with Correia and Walleman, as well as to obtain SSA records.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions to correct a pre-decisional duty to assist error, including verifying in-service stressors and scheduling examinations.

The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including a lumbar spine disability, neuropathy, and bilateral hip and shoulder disabilities, as well as non-compensable ratings for residuals of right inguinal hernia repair and a scar associated with that surgery.

The Veteran withdrew their appeal for service connection for various conditions, including ankylosing spondylitis of the lower back and left and right ankle disabilities.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions, including low back pain, right knee pain, right ankle pain, right hip pain, left knee pain, GERD/reflux, mental health disorder, sleep apnea, and left shoulder pain, due to a duty to assist error regarding VA examinations.

The Board remands the claims for service connection for a left foot disorder, left shoulder disorder, lumbar spine disorder, and bilateral hearing loss to obtain outstanding VA treatment records and schedule the Veteran for VA examinations.

The Board denied service connection for a right shoulder disability as the evidence did not support that it began during active service or was otherwise related to an in-service injury.

The Board denied service connection for right and left foot drop, granted service connection for a right shoulder strain, and denied service connection for TBI. The claim for TDIU was dismissed.

The Board granted service connection for a neck, left knee, left shoulder, right hip, and bilateral knee disorders as they are related to the Veteran's active-duty service.

The Board denied service connection for allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, and GERD but granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Some issues related to other conditions were remanded.

The Board granted a TDIU from May 18, 2015, and increased disability ratings of 60 percent for the right and left knee replacements.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability. Several conditions were remanded for further development.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection for tinnitus, TBI, right and left shoulder rotator cuff tendinitis, and migraines.

The Board denied an earlier effective date for the 30 percent disability rating assigned to the left shoulder, finding that there was no factually ascertainable increase in severity of the condition within one year prior to the August 2023 claim.

The Board denied higher initial ratings for cervical strain, right shoulder strain, left knee strain with shin splints, and right knee strain with shin splints. However, it granted a 20 percent rating for bilateral dry eye syndrome and a 10 percent rating for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Service connection was also granted for major depressive disorder, recurrent episode, mild and generalized anxiety disorder (claimed as ADHD) and tinnitus.