The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral elbow and hand pain, finding that his rheumatoid arthritis is not related to his military service. The Board also found no evidence of a neck disorder or bilateral knee disorder in service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner determined that the Veteran's hand and elbow pain was more likely due to his diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis rather than his service-connected shoulder condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 27, 2010
- Citation
- 1004070
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 1004070.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, rheumatoid arthritis, and a compensable disability evaluation for pseudofolliculitis barbae.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bilateral upper extremities pain, an acquired psychiatric disorder (depression), and squamous cell carcinoma of the anus as secondary to service-connected hepatitis C. However, psoriatic arthritis was denied.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for eligibility under the PCAFC program due to his ability to perform activities of daily living and lack of need for personal care services.
- Granted
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