The Board remands the claims for an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for left shoulder degenerative arthritis, right shoulder degenerative arthritis, and left knee arthritis, as well as a claim for special monthly compensation based on loss of use of lower extremities, to correct duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: The January 2013 VA joints examination and December 2019 VA shoulder and knee examinations are inadequate due to insufficient range of motion findings that do not address the ameliorative effects of medication. Additionally, the January 2013 VA examination report does not provide specific values for ROM in passive motion, weight-bearing, and non-weight-bearing despite noting pain and functional loss.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder degenerative arthritis, right shoulder degenerative arthritis, left knee arthritis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 18, 2025
- Citation
- A25053347
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,902 · Granted: 11% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A25053347.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
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 appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining clarification from the August 2017 VA examiner regarding which symptoms are related to his service-connected left trapezius strain and whether any non-service-connected conditions represent a progression of that disability.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew her appeal regarding the service connection for left and right knee arthritis, thus the appeal is dismissed.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for right shoulder degenerative arthritis with rotator cuff ossific tendinopathy, finding that his current disability is less likely related to service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and dismissed all other appeals related to various joint conditions.
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