The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for left and right shoulder conditions, finding no evidence of a causal relationship between the current disabilities and his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that it was less likely than not that the Veteran's bilateral shoulder condition was incurred in or caused by his military service due to lack of documentation of shoulder injuries during service and the first mention of shoulder issues being in 2011, long after separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 2, 2025
- Citation
- A25030530
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.
- Dismissed
The veteran's appeal requests for service connection and increased ratings were denied due to untimeliness, as the appeals were not filed within one year of the respective rating decisions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a left shoulder condition, finding that the Veteran's current disability is related to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for back, left wrist, left and right knee, and left and right shoulder conditions due to missing personnel records and an inadequate VA medical opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for multiple conditions, including left and right leg, arm, knee, shoulder, kidney, plantar fasciitis, and back conditions, as further development is needed to address pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
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