The Board has determined that the Veteran's right shoulder, cervical spine, and thoracolumbar spine conditions are not service-connected as they were not incurred or aggravated during his military service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not establish a direct link between the Veteran's current diagnoses and his active duty service.
- Claimed conditions
- Right Shoulder Rotator Cuff Tear, Right Shoulder Labral Tear, Right Shoulder Bicipital Tendon Tear, Acromioclavicular Joint Osteoarthritis, Degenerative Arthritis (Right Shoulder)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 21, 2016
- Citation
- 1644168
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 1644168.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for higher ratings on several conditions have been dismissed due to the Veteran withdrawing his appeals.,The Board has not assigned a specific rating or effective date as the claims are being remanded.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for his right shoulder disability and scar was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on limitation of motion or other criteria.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal of a proposal to reduce the disability rating for right shoulder rotator cuff tear because it was not within the Board's jurisdiction to adjudicate such a non-final decision.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, GERD, shoulder, hand, and knee conditions, have rendered him unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment prior to September 26, 2025.
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