Osteoarthritis (degenerative arthritis) decisions — 2023

The Board has determined that the Veteran's degenerative arthritis of the spine, claimed as back injuries, is related to his active military service and grants this claim.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral knee osteoarthritis, left hip femoroacetabular impingement syndrome, right hip disability manifested by pain, and degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine as secondary to service-connected bilateral pes planus with left foot plantar fasciitis.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right hip osteoarthritis as secondary to his service-connected right foot hallux valgus and for left shoulder acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis, finding that there is no evidence of a direct relationship between these conditions and active service.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as he did not meet the schedular requirement for a single service-connected disability rated at 60% or more, and his depression is not considered in determining unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.

The Board has dismissed the appeals for increased ratings for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis, right lower extremity radiculopathy, left lower extremity radiculopathy, and bilateral hearing loss disability as they are all covered by the March 2023 rating decision.

The Veteran's right knee disability, including degenerative arthritis, is found to have started during his military service and has continued since. The Board granted the claim for service connection.

The Veteran's right ankle disability has resulted in marked impairment from January 24, 2022, forward and the Board granted an increased rating of 20 percent for his condition.

The Board has determined that the VA examination and opinion provided are inadequate, as they do not address whether the Veteran's current back disability is related to his service-connected left leg condition or if it was aggravated by this condition. The claim must be remanded for further development.

The rating reduction from 20 percent to 10 percent for lumbosacral spine strain was improper; a 20 percent rating is restored, effective July 27, 2020. The Veteran's entitlement to a higher rating and an earlier effective date for TDIU are remanded.

The Veteran's TDIU claim was denied as his service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.,The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II claim was also denied because the evidence did not show that it required regulation of activities (avoidance of strenuous occupational and recreational activities).

The Veteran's claim for ischemic cardiomyopathy was reopened and granted based on evidence showing a current disability, in-service injury, and a nexus between the two.,Service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss was denied as there is no evidence of current hearing loss meeting VA criteria.

The Board has restored the Veteran's disability ratings for his thoracolumbar spine and left upper extremity radiculopathy, granted increased ratings for his right lower and left lower extremity radiculopathies, and granted TDIU based on his service-connected degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine. Basic eligibility to DEA and SMC at the housebound rate have also been established.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, lumbar spine degenerative disc disease and degenerative arthritis, bilateral hearing loss, and a heart disability to include congestive heart failure have been granted. The rating assigned is 10 percent for hypertension on and prior to June 7, 2023.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is dismissed as of April 27, 2018 because he has a combined disability rating of 100% for his service-connected disabilities and the appeal is moot due to the grant of a 100% disability rating.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for lumbar spine degenerative disc disease, right shoulder osteoarthritis, left shoulder degenerative arthritis (status-post rotator cuff repair), diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. The Board found that there was no evidence of in-service injury or illness related to these conditions.,The March 2023 VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's lumbar spine disorder, right shoulder osteoarthritis, left shoulder degenerative arthritis (status-post rotator cuff repair), diabetes mellitus, and hypertension are not likely related to his active service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a back condition, right knee condition, and right arm nerve damage due to potential service connection issues.

The Veteran's application to reopen his claim of service connection for right ankle sprain residuals is granted. The issues of service connection for a right ankle disorder, left ankle disorder, and a rating of more than 10 percent for lumbar spine degenerative arthritis since October 31, 2013 are remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD, but dismissed the appeals for degenerative arthritis of the thoracic and lumbar spine and diabetes mellitus. The appeal for Parkinson's disease is remanded to obtain a medical opinion regarding its relationship to service-connected PTSD.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right knee disability, back condition (claimed as secondary to right knee disability), and neck condition (claimed as secondary to right knee disability) due to lack of evidence showing that these conditions began during active service or are otherwise related to an in-service injury.

The Board has granted service connection for degenerative arthritis of the right foot and left foot, finding that there is at least an approximate balance of evidence to support the Veteran's claim.