The Board has determined that the veteran's degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine is service-connected, but his shoulder disability is not.
The deciding factor: VA medical records show treatment for back pain during active duty and post-service diagnosis of cervical spine degenerative joint disease. The VA examiner concluded this condition was related to spinal pain while in military service. However, there is no evidence linking the current shoulder disabilities (left bicipital tendonitis and myofascial pain syndrome) to his service.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease of the cervical spine, left bicipital tendonitis, right shoulder myofascial pain syndrome, degenerative joint disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 31, 2003
- Citation
- 0306139
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,038 · Granted: 30% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0306139.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an evaluation in excess of 40 percent for his lumbar spine disability has been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating, as there was no unfavorable ankylosis or incapacitating episodes of IVDS.
- Denied
The Board denied an increased rating for the Veteran's lumbar spine disability, finding that there was no evidence of unfavorable ankylosis and thus not warranting a higher rating.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for an extension of a temporary total evaluation based on the need for convalescence due to his service-connected left great toe hallux valgus and degenerative joint disease has been dismissed because this issue was already decided by the Board in January 2026.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's right shoulder myofascial pain syndrome, finding that it is etiologically related to his active duty service.
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