The Board found that the veteran's cervical spine and shoulder arthritis were not incurred or aggravated during service, and denied his claims for service connection.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner could not determine if the veteran's current arthritis is related to his shell fragment wounds sustained in service.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of the cervical spine, arthritis of the shoulders
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- September 7, 2001
- Citation
- 0122178
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0122178.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for PTSD, major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, unspecified psychosis, arthritis of the lumbar spine, degenerative disc disease, multilevel spinal stenosis, and arthritis of the cervical spine and degenerative disc disease. The diagnoses are linked to in-service physical assaults.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and dismissed all other appeals related to various joint conditions.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for a cervical spine disability including arthritis of the cervical spine, and herniated nucleus pulposus of cervical spine secondary to his service-connected lumbosacral strain with intervertebral disc syndrome.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine and arthritis of the cervical spine, attributing these conditions to a motor vehicle accident in 1977 during active service.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.