The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral shoulder disability, diagnosed as arthritis, was not incurred in or aggravated by his active duty military service and denied his claim for service connection.
The deciding factor: The April 2011 VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's current shoulder disability was less likely than not related to his service due to a lack of evidence of injury during service and no continuity of symptoms since separation.
- Claimed conditions
- arthritis of bilateral shoulders
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 26, 2011
- Citation
- 1139801
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1139801.
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: Partly granted
The Veteran's claim for arthritis of the bilateral hands was denied as there is no current diagnosis.,The Veteran's claim for arthritis of the bilateral shoulders has been reopened due to new evidence indicating a current diagnosis.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for further development, including scheduling a VA examination and verifying the Veteran's current mailing address.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records. The claim will be reconsidered after this additional development.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and SSA records. The Veteran's claims for arthritis of various joints are being reviewed.
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