The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right shoulder disability, personality disorder, and acquired psychiatric disorder. The decision also notes that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet criteria for Total Disability Evaluation Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU).
The deciding factor: There is no established in-service event or disease for the right shoulder disability, and the evidence does not support a finding of a nexus between the current psychiatric disorders and service.
- Claimed conditions
- right shoulder sprain, personality disorder, depressive disorder and mood disorder, not otherwise specified
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- August 7, 2017
- Citation
- 1731796
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 1731796.
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 appeal for earlier effective dates for service connection of various conditions has been dismissed as the claims are final due to lack of timely appeal within one year of the October 2009 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate VA examination and opinion, requiring a new examination and opinion to determine if the Veteran's right shoulder disability is related to service.
- Granted
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric condition, including personality disorder and PTSD, is granted as service connected. The Board found the evidence sufficient to grant service connection due to a qualifying event in service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD and depression, finding that his symptoms are adequately accounted for by his existing diagnoses of PTSD and major depressive disorder.
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