Osteoarthritis (degenerative arthritis) Board decisions

The Board granted an increased rating of 60 percent for chronic edema, right lower extremity. The claims for service connection for right and left knee disabilities were remanded.

The Board granted service connection for a neck scar, dismissed the claim of entitlement to service connection for drug and alcohol abuse, and denied service connection for depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), dizziness disorder, fatigue disorder, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, degenerative arthritis, left ankle arthritis, and left foot disorder.

The Board remands the claims for a right hip disability, a higher rating for a right knee strain, and a higher rating for a right shoulder degenerative arthritis to correct duty to assist errors.

The Board granted a 10 percent rating for left knee strain, limitation of flexion and denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee sprain, limitation of extension. The claims for increased ratings for the right knee and service connection for hypertension were remanded.

The Board granted service connection for GERD, obstructive sleep apnea, and increased the ratings for PTSD and bilateral shin splints.

The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's intervertebral disc syndrome, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, and bilateral knee degenerative arthritis, as well as left ankle strain.

The Board remands the claim to ensure that the Veteran is provided adequate notice and an opportunity to respond to a jurisdictional defect regarding the timeliness of his NOD.

The Board remands the claims for a right knee disorder, lumbar spine degenerative arthritis with spinal stenosis, and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors.

The Board denied service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine as there is no evidence that it began during active service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury, event, or disease.

The Board granted a 30 percent rating for left ankle osteoarthritis from June 25, 2021, and a separate 10 percent rating for left ankle instability.

The Board granted an effective date of March 14, 2022, for the award of a 40 percent evaluation for chronic sprain of the lumbar spine with spondylitic spondylolisthesis, degenerative arthritis, and disc diseases.

The Board remands the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, as there is sufficient evidence to substantiate a reasonable possibility that the Veteran is unemployable due to his service-connected conditions.

The Board denied service connection for lumbosacral strain and myofascitis, degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine (claimed as bulging disc C3-C4 and C5-C6), an increased rating for gastroesophageal reflux disease, bilateral hearing loss, headaches, and allergic rhinitis. The Board also denied earlier effective dates for these conditions.

The Board denied a compensable rating for lumbar spine surgical scars and a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, while remanding the claims for increased ratings for left shoulder strain with AC joint osteoarthritis, ulnar neuropathy of the left upper extremity, and lumbar spinal stenosis, degenerative arthritis, and degenerative disc disease.

The Board remands the claims for increased ratings of left knee osteoarthritis, right knee strain, and entitlement to TDIU due to insufficient evidence regarding instability in both knees.

The Board granted the reinstatement of a 30 percent rating for chronic urticaria, denied ratings in excess of 30 percent for chronic urticaria and other conditions, and granted TDIU and SMC.

The Veteran was granted a 30 percent rating for right shoulder glenohumeral joint osteoarthritis prior to March 25, 2022, and the claims for increased ratings for recurrent dislocation and total arthroplasty were denied.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for right and left knee chondromalacia patella with osteoarthritis, as the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 10 percent.

The Board granted service connection for left and right knee strains, as well as a lumbosacral spine disability, secondary to the Veteran's service-connected hip early osteoarthrosis. The initial rating of 40 percent was assigned for the lumbosacral spine disability.

The Board denied service connection for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine, while remanding claims for Crohn's disease, arthritis rheumatoid and psoriatic, and psoriasis.