The Board denied an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for left and right shoulder strain with degenerative arthritis.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a finding that the Veteran's shoulder disabilities warranted a higher rating than the currently assigned 20 percent under the applicable criteria.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder strain with degenerative arthritis, right shoulder strain with degenerative arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25052454
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 945 · 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 A25052454.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for multiple conditions, including right and left shoulder strains with degenerative arthritis, right and left hip degenerative arthritis, left ankle degenerative arthritis with chronic instability and anterior talofibular ligament strain, cervical spine degenerative disc disease with degenerative arthritis, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and obstructive sleep apnea, all of which are secondary to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection and increased ratings, granted readjudication on new evidence, and remanded several claims.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a retrospective medical opinion to address the Veteran's right shoulder disability without the ameliorative effects of his use of pain medication.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's left shoulder strain with degenerative arthritis, finding a nexus between the in-service injury and the current disability.
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