Osteoarthritis (degenerative arthritis) Board decisions

The Veteran was granted service connection for allergic rhinitis with acute sinusitis and an initial rating of 20 percent for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, while the claims for arthritis and increased ratings for lumbosacral strain were remanded.

The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining SSA records.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for the grants of service connection and increased ratings, granted readjudication on new evidence, and remanded several claims.

The Board granted service connection for degenerative arthritis of the thoracolumbar spine and an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) and persistent depressive disorder (PDD), based on evidence supporting a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active military service.

The Board remands the claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder and lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis to obtain additional evidence.

The Board grants service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine based on continuity and chronicity.

The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include anxiety, depression, severe alcohol use disorder and moderate cocaine use disorder due to military sexual trauma (MST), and granted increased ratings for certain service-connected disabilities. The claim for dizziness was dismissed, as was the entitlement to a TDIU.

The Board granted an effective date of January 14, 2021 for the right hip disability and denied earlier effective dates for left hip osteoarthritis and low back ankylosing spondylitis and degenerative arthritis. The claims for increased ratings and TDIU were remanded.

The Board remands the issues of entitlement to higher initial disability ratings for right and left knee patellofemoral pain syndrome, as well as a higher rating for degenerative disc disease and degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine prior to May 9, 2016.

The Board denied service connection for a traumatic brain injury and remanded the claim for degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine due to insufficient evidence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for a rating greater than 40 percent for lumbosacral strain with IVDS and degenerative arthritis of the spine, as well as entitlement to TDIU.

The appeal seeking revision or reversal of the July 2019 rating decision that denied service connection for degenerative arthritis of left shoulder with rotator cuff tendonitis based on a clear and unmistakable error (CUE) is denied.

The Board denied increased ratings for left and right lower extremity radiculopathy, but remanded claims for higher ratings of the knee arthroplasties, hip bursitis, lumbar spine disability, and TDIU.

The appeal for a higher disability rating for right ankle degenerative arthritis under the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA) system is dismissed due to procedural defects in how the appeal was docketed.

The Board remands the Veteran's claim for an effective date earlier than April 5, 2021 for a TDIU on an extraschedular basis to the Director of Compensation Service for consideration.

The Board granted service connection for left hip joint replacement with degenerative arthritis as secondary to the Veteran's already service-connected lumbosacral strain with IVDS.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for service connection for left ankle degenerative arthritis, right ankle degenerative arthritis, left knee osteoarthritis, right knee osteoarthritis, and plantar fasciitis, bilateral feet.

The Board granted an initial 20 percent rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy and denied a higher initial rating for right wrist surgery residual pain. The back disability claim was remanded for further examination.

The Board remands the claims for further development, including obtaining SSA records and scheduling an examination to assess the severity of the Veteran's service-connected disabilities.

The Board remands the claim for a new medical opinion to address the Veteran's lay reports of an ongoing left leg condition since service.