The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a left shoulder disability, finding that there was no evidence showing an in-service injury or disease and that any current condition is not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence shows that the Veteran did not sustain a disease or injury while on active duty that caused his current left shoulder disability. The post-service medical records do not show a continued problem with a left shoulder disability in and since service, except for treatment after a car accident.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder old acromioclavicular (AC) separation, traumatic arthritis of the left AC joint, posttraumatic AC arthrosis and instability, anterior dislocation, rotator cuff tear
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2019
- Citation
- 19194737
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 19194737.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a right shoulder disorder, including bicipital tendon tear, rotator cuff tear, and tendinosis, as there was no evidence of an in-service injury or chronicity of symptoms to support a direct link between the current condition and active duty.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the appeal to the agency of original jurisdiction for a medical opinion on the nature and etiology of any right shoulder disorder.
- Granted
The Board granted an initial rating of 40 percent for the Veteran's right shoulder disability, which is the maximum schedular rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the Veteran's claim for service connection for a right shoulder disability to obtain a medical opinion regarding whether it is related to his service-connected left shoulder disability.
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