The Veteran's claims for service connection for a right shoulder condition and an increased initial evaluation for his right knee disability were denied as there was no current diagnosis of a right shoulder disability, and the evidence did not support a higher rating for the right knee.
The deciding factor: There is no current diagnosis of a right shoulder disability, and the Veteran's symptoms remained constant throughout the course of the period on appeal, thus no staged ratings are warranted.
- Claimed conditions
- right shoulder separation, right knee patellofemoral syndrome with x-ray findings of mild osteoarthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 6, 2009
- Citation
- 0908488
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 832 · Granted: 18% (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 0908488.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted an increased rating for right shoulder separation and service connection for bilateral plantar fasciitis, but denied the appellant's claim of clear and unmistakable error in a previous May 2003 decision.
- Granted
Effective dates of February 23, 2023 have been granted for the award of service connection for right shoulder separation, diabetes, dry eyes, peripheral neuropathy of left lower extremity, and peripheral neuropathy of the feet.
- Partly granted
The appeal of the June 2022 proposal to discontinue the separate rating for right shoulder separation was dismissed, and a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss was denied. The issues regarding the right shoulder, right upper extremity radiculopathy, and service connection for high blood pressure were remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's request for an effective date prior to February 25, 2014, for a 20 percent rating for service-connected right shoulder separation. The decision found no CUE in the May 2003 rating decision and that the assignment of the initial 10 percent rating was supported by the evidence at that time.
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.