The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder rotator cuff surgery is related to his service, including his Reserve duty in 2006. The evidence supports the Veteran's assertions of a pre-existing injury during training and subsequent aggravation during active duty.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found that the Veteran’s current left shoulder condition is related to his military service due to multiple complaints and treatments within a year of his discharge, including a prior surgery in 2008 for a previous shoulder dislocation.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder rotator cuff surgery, left shoulder glenohumeral joint instability, traumatic arthritis, Labral tear
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 14, 2019
- Citation
- 19185981
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for a higher rating for back disability was denied. Other issues related to service connection and total disability were remanded for further review.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for a rating higher than 20% for his left shoulder disability, stating that the evidence did not support a higher rating.
- Denied
The Board denied an increased rating in excess of 30 percent for the Veteran's right shoulder disability, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a separate 10 percent rating for slight instability of the right knee, and his existing 10 percent rating for painful flexion of the right knee remains unchanged.
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