The Board has remanded the case due to issues related to adhesive capsulitis of the right shoulder and its impact on the veteran's service-connected disability. The veteran must be afforded another examination to determine if his right shoulder adhesive capsulitis is caused or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the criteria for a higher rating under Diagnostic Code 5302 were not met due to the presence of adhesive capsulitis, which was not service-connected. The Joint Motion requested a remand because the Board failed to adequately discuss the holding in Mittleider v. West (1998).
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of gunshot wound to the right shoulder affecting Muscle Group II, adhesive capsulitis of the right shoulder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 23, 2004
- Citation
- 0416428
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,464 · Granted: 14% (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 0416428.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's initial claim for higher ratings for his service-connected depression and adhesive capsulitis of the right shoulder was denied. The Board found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a disability rating greater than 30 percent for depression prior to July 16, 2014; greater than 50 percent from July 16, 2014, until July 12, 2019; and greater than 70 percent since July 12, 2019. The Veteran's depression was rated at a maximum of 70 percent.
- Denied
The Veteran's nonservice-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for pension or special monthly pension benefits due to his unemployability and lack of permanent total disability.
- Denied
The Board denied a claim for a rating in excess of 20 percent for diabetes mellitus with adhesive capsulitis of the right shoulder, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for an increased rating under the applicable diagnostic codes.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the veteran's diabetes mellitus, adhesive capsulitis of both shoulders, and diabetic neuropathy of both upper extremities. The veteran appealed for higher initial ratings for these conditions, but the Board found no basis to grant any rating higher than 20 percent.
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