The Board dismissed the appeal of service connection for joint pains because it was related to previously granted claims for shoulder and knee disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Veteran indicated that the claim for service connection for joint pains was solely related to his claims for service connection for bilateral shoulder and knee disabilities, which were already granted in a previous decision.
- Claimed conditions
- joint pains, bilateral shoulder disabilities, bilateral knee disabilities
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19191587
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,569 · Granted: 26% (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 19191587.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeal for entitlement to TDIU and denied his claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, back strain, bilateral knee disabilities, and bilateral ankle disabilities. The claims of service connection for these conditions are remanded due to a duty-to-assist error.
- Granted
The Veteran's tinnitus and bilateral knee disabilities are granted as service-connected. The Board found that the Veteran had an onset of these conditions during active service with continuity of symptomatology thereafter.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's left shoulder disability, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral knee disabilities due to new and relevant evidence submitted since the last denial. Service connection is also granted for gastritis (gastrointestinal condition) and cyst scrotum on the right side.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD, bilateral knee and shoulder disabilities are found to have caused his sleep apnea through the aggravation of obesity. Service connection for sleep apnea is granted as secondary to these conditions.
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