The Board has granted service connection for bilateral shoulder strain, a bilateral knee disability (claimed as chronic joint pain), a bilateral elbow disability (claimed as chronic joint pain), and a bilateral hand strain. The Veteran's bilateral foot disability is also granted.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence was at least in equipoise on whether the Veteran had symptoms of chronic joint pains, including shoulder, knee, elbow, and hand pain, which began during service and continued after separation until later diagnosed as specific conditions. The Board granted service connection based on direct service incurrence.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral shoulder strain, bilateral knee strain with right knee osteoarthritis, bilateral elbow strain with left elbow tendonitis, bilateral hand strain, bilateral plantar fasciitis with left calcaneal spurs
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2021
- Citation
- 21061619
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,200 · Granted: 43% (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 21061619.
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 Board has determined that there was a duty to assist error and remands the claims for bilateral shoulder strain, ankle tendonitis, and patellofemoral pain syndrome due to inadequate VA opinions.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral shoulder disability is related to service, resolving all doubts in his favor. The evidence shows a current diagnosis of bilateral shoulder strain and degenerative arthritis, which the Veteran attributes to injuries sustained during military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for middle back strain. The claims of service connection for PTSD, bilateral hip sprain, and bilateral shoulder strain are remanded due to a duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral shoulder strain, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
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