The Board denied a rating in excess of 20 percent for service-connected degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the left shoulder, finding that the veteran's symptoms did not warrant a higher evaluation.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found objective evidence of shoulder motion limited to no more than midway between the side and shoulder level, with subjective complaints of constant pain, worse with increased activity and weather changes, and weakness. The disability was rated based on limitation of motion alone.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) of the left shoulder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- April 4, 2003
- Citation
- 0306584
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,196 · Granted: 17% (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 0306584.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for additional VA medical opinions to determine if the Veteran's current disabilities of the hips, shoulders, knees, and cervical spine are related to his active service.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed all claims for service connection due to the Veteran's withdrawal of his legacy appeals.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's PTSD rating is remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his condition. Service connection claims for left shoulder DJD and lower back pain are also remanded due to outstanding treatment records and need for medical opinions on etiology.
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