The Veteran's left shoulder condition is granted as secondary to his service-connected thoracic outlet syndrome. The lung condition claim is denied.
The deciding factor: There is no current diagnosis of a lung condition, and the VA examiner opined that the shortness of breath with mild restrictive changes was most likely caused by sleep apnea and obesity.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder condition, lung condition
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 31, 2020
- Citation
- 20007793
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,329 · Granted: 31% (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 20007793.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea has been dismissed due to the withdrawal of his request.,Service connection for a back condition is denied as there is no evidence that the condition began during service or is related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's lung condition, including pneumonia residuals, COPD, and emphysema, is remanded for further examination to determine if they are related to his military service. The appeal is reopened based on new evidence.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeals for service connection for sleep apnea and a left shoulder condition due to the Veteran's withdrawal of the appeal.
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