Hip decisions — 2011

The Veteran's claims for service connection for low back, right knee, and left hip disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional development including obtaining medical records and addressing the issues of direct service connection as well as secondary service connection.

The Board has determined that additional development is necessary to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims, including obtaining specific information regarding his periods of active duty and inactive duty training in the Army Reserve.

The Veteran's appeals for right knee and right hip conditions have been withdrawn. The claim for hepatitis C has been reopened due to new evidence, and service connection is granted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including verification of prior service and a VA examination to determine the relationship between his hip conditions and diabetes mellitus and any active service.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Board found no evidence of a link between the claimed disabilities and his service-connected conditions, or any other presumptive basis.

The appeal is being remanded due to the retirement of the Veterans Law Judge who presided over the September 2004 hearing. The Veteran's case will be transferred to the Denver VA Regional Office for a videoconference hearing.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right hip and leg disabilities are not service-connected as they are secondary to her service-connected residuals of right ilioinguinal neurectomy.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left ankle and bilateral hip disabilities are related to his military service, granting service connection for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed cervical spine disease, left arm numbness, left leg numbness, left shoulder disability, right shoulder disability, and left hip disability to include bone graft and scar are not related to service. The claim is denied.

The Board has granted the Veteran's petition to reopen his previously denied claim of service connection for diabetes mellitus. The evidence submitted since the last final denial is considered new and material, as it relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim (the need for a link between diabetes and exposure to herbicides).

The Board denied increased ratings for bilateral knee disabilities following total knee replacements, finding no evidence of severe painful motion or weakness in the knees.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for a left hip disability that he contends is secondary to his service-connected right knee internal derangement status post anterior cruciate ligament repair. The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to evaluate the relationship between these conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to a lack of consideration of the Veteran's report of continuity of symptoms following service. The claim is being returned to the examiner who provided the July 2011 opinion for clarification.

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral hip disability and remanded it for further development.

The Board has determined that additional evidentiary development is necessary prior to its adjudication of the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for various disabilities. The case is REMANDED for a new VA examination and opinion.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a left knee disability. The claims for right hip and left hip disabilities are pending with further development required, while the issue of initial compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss remains pending.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records from his service separation to the present, verifying whether he is still alive, and obtaining SSA disability benefits records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right hip and back disabilities are reasonably related to his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities, warranting service connection.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection on all issues except arteriosclerotic heart disease (coronary artery disease) is dismissed. The Board finds that the Veteran has coronary artery disease, presumed to have been incurred due to herbicide exposure during his Vietnam service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right knee and right hip disabilities, finding no evidence of a direct relationship to service or secondary to service-connected left knee disabilities.