The Veteran's claims for service connection for right shoulder and cervical spine disabilities were denied as there was no evidence of a chronic disability in or caused by service. The Board found that the Veteran did not have an in-service injury, and his current conditions are more likely due to age-related wear and tear rather than service.
The deciding factor: The April 2013 VA examiner provided a negative nexus opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's right shoulder disability and service, finding no evidence of chronic disease or injury during service that could be linked to his current condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Osteoarthritis of the right shoulder, Degenerative disc disease and osteoarthritis of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 27, 2019
- Citation
- 19114610
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,374 · Granted: 19% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19114610.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for degenerative disc disease of the spine, and osteoarthritis of the right shoulder and left shoulder based on evidence showing that these conditions had onset during active military service.
- Denied
The Board denied a higher rating for the right shoulder disability and service connection for bilateral hearing loss.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for osteoarthritis of the right and left shoulders, finding that these conditions are related to in-service injuries.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the cases for further clarification and examination regarding the Veteran's right shoulder disability and bilateral hearing loss. The claims will be reviewed again with new medical opinions.
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