The Board denied service connection for a right shoulder disability, finding that the current arthritis is not related to service. The Veteran's STRs were silent for any relevant complaints and he did not report right shoulder problems in his subsequent periods of service.,Service connection was also denied for right ear hearing loss and tinnitus, as there was no evidence of acoustic trauma during service and the Board found that current hearing loss and tinnitus are more likely due to aging, occupational noise exposure, and recreational noise exposure.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's STRs were silent for any relevant complaints regarding his right shoulder. The VA examiner opined that the current arthritis is not related to service as there was no evidence of a fracture in the right shoulder during service.,There was no evidence of acoustic trauma during service and the Board found that current hearing loss and tinnitus are more likely due to aging, occupational noise exposure, and recreational noise exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- {"condition_name":"Right Shoulder Disability (including arthritis)","diagnosis_dates":["1997"]}, {"condition_name":"Right Ear Hearing Loss","diagnosis_dates":["2016"]}, {"condition_name":"Left Ear Hearing Loss","diagnosis_dates":["2016"]}, {"condition_name":"Tinnitus"}
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19103405
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
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