Osteoarthritis (degenerative arthritis) decisions — 2024

The Veteran's request to withdraw his appeal for an increased rating for degenerative arthritis of the spine has been granted.,Remand is ordered for further development and consideration of the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, gastrointestinal condition (including irritable bowel syndrome and chronic diarrhea), and dizziness.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a gastrointestinal condition, including irritable bowel syndrome and chronic diarrhea, is remanded due to insufficient evidence. A VA examination is needed to determine the current severity of his symptoms and their relationship to service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for dizziness (claimed as vertigo) is remanded due to insufficient evidence. A VA examination is needed to determine whether it is at least as likely as not that the condition was incurred during service or is otherwise etiologically related to service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him substantially confined to his dwelling, the immediate premises, a ward or clinical area of an institution due to a service-connected condition. He does not have one disability that is rated as totally disabling and an additional disability or disabilities that are independently rated or ratable as at least 60 percent disabling.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence regarding his claimed low back disability, peripheral neuropathy of upper and lower extremities, and respiratory disability. The VA examinations did not fully address the Veteran's contentions about in-service injuries.

The Veteran's initial evaluations for traumatic osteoarthritis of the right hip and right knee instability have been granted, with a 20% evaluation assigned from November 23, 2021 to the present for traumatic osteoarthritis of the right hip, limitation of flexion.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further examination and opinions regarding service connection for right knee degenerative arthritis, including status post right-total-knee arthroplasty. The issues include secondary causation and aggravation by other service-connected disabilities.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for additional development, including scheduling a VA examination and obtaining outstanding records. The issues of entitlement to an increased rating for his back disability and TDIU prior to September 19, 2018 are inextricably intertwined.

The Veteran's claims for various conditions, including tension headaches, allergic rhinitis, asthma with histoplasmosis, cervical spine degenerative arthritis, lumbar spine degenerative arthritis, and left knee patellofemoral syndrome were denied. The Veteran was not granted higher ratings or initial compensable ratings for several of her conditions.

The Veteran's application to reopen claims for service connection for spondylolisthesis and degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine, as well as left inguinal hernia, was granted. The right inguinal hernia status post repair is also granted with a 10 percent rating.

The Veteran's initial compensable ratings for the linear scar of the right hand and painful scar of the right hand have been dismissed. The Veteran has also received a grant of an initial 20% rating for his erectile dysfunction.,The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his lumbar spine strain and degenerative disc disease, as well as claims for initial compensable ratings for Dupuytren's Contracture in the left hand and right hand, have been remanded.

The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for a cervical spine condition due to its potential secondary nature to the Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability. The claim will be further developed.

The Board has remanded the case for a new VA examination to address inadequacies in the February 2022 VA examination, and for further development regarding the TDIU claim.

The Board has remanded several issues related to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including ratings for lumbar spine conditions, radiculopathies, shoulder conditions, and gastroesophageal reflux disease. The appeals are being returned to the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) for further action.

The Veteran's initial ratings for bilateral plantar fasciitis and lumbar spine disability have been denied. The issues of entitlement to separate ratings for lower extremity radiculopathy, TDIU, and psychiatric disability secondary to plantar fasciitis are remanded.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to his service-connected disabilities, finding that he is not unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's left and right shoulder bursitis with acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis are currently rated at 20 percent each, but the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.

The Board has determined that further development is necessary before the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability can be adjudicated. The claims file must be updated with the Veteran's SSA records and earning reports, and the case will be referred to the Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for a VA examination to determine if his current back disability is related to service or preexisting asymptomatic scoliosis, and whether any increase in severity during service.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's left hip disability and its relationship to service-connected conditions. The Veteran is seeking service connection for a left hip disability, which may be related to his service-connected lumbosacral strain with sacroiliac injury.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and a separate disability rating for left knee instability are remanded due to inadequate medical evidence in the record.

The Board has granted service connection for cervical spine arthritis, lumbar spine arthritis, left knee arthritis, right leg radiculopathy, and left leg radiculopathy.,All issues related to these conditions have been resolved in the Veteran's favor.