The veteran's service-connected bilateral shoulder disabilities do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and the Board denies his claim for TDIU.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not show that the veteran's service-connected disabilities preclude him from securing or following substantially gainful employment. The weight of medical evidence shows that his inability to work is more strongly associated with alcohol use than his shoulder disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral shoulder disabilities
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- December 4, 2006
- Citation
- 0637674
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,175 · Granted: 22% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0637674.
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 Veteran is granted an effective date of June 22, 2019 for the award of special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), finding that it is related to her service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and bilateral shoulder disabilities.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for bilateral knee disabilities, bilateral lower extremity nerve disabilities, and bilateral shoulder disabilities was dismissed because the appeal was not filed within one year of the August 8, 2024 rating decision.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's lung disability and sinusitis claims are denied as there is no current diagnosis.,The deferred right foot disability claim is dismissed due to a premature Notice of Disagreement.,Heart and diabetes mellitus claims are remanded for additional etiology opinions regarding herbicide exposure.,Allergic rhinitis and bilateral shoulder disabilities claims are remanded for new etiology opinions considering toxic exposure risk activities (TERA).
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