Hip decisions — 2017

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the current severity of his right knee disability.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for a left hip condition as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease to which his current condition can be linked.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for his back, bilateral hip, and erectile dysfunction disabilities have been denied as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease that could be linked to these conditions. The Board also found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for secondary service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left hip disability more nearly approximates a nonunion fracture of the femoral neck with preserved weightbearing, warranting an initial rating of 60 percent.

The Veteran's claims for cervical spine, low back, and bilateral hip disabilities are being returned to the VA examiner for additional development as they were not fully addressed in previous examinations.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine was denied. The current evaluation is 40 percent disabling, effective April 11, 2016.

The Board has granted a rating of 20 percent for the Veteran's service-connected right foot disability, effective May 19, 2015. The Veteran was previously rated at 10 percent prior to that date.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left hip disability did not manifest during service and is not proximately due to, or aggravated by his service-connected left knee disability. Therefore, the claim for service connection for a left hip disability is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have precluded him from securing or maintaining substantially gainful employment since August 10, 2000. As a result, the criteria for entitlement to TDIU have been met since that time.

The Veteran's disability ratings were reduced from 40 percent to 10 percent for lumbosacral paravertebral myositis, effective June 1, 2011. The reduction was found to be proper as there had been no actual improvement in the Veteran's condition.

The Veteran's PTSD is currently rated at 30 percent, effective January 28, 2011. The Board finds that the evidence does not support a higher rating as his symptoms do not meet or approximate the criteria for a 50% evaluation.

The Veteran's left hip disability is currently rated at 50 percent prior to February 3, 2017 and increased to 70 percent thereafter. The Veteran's cervical spine disorder was initially rated at 20 percent prior to February 3, 2017 and increased to 10 percent thereafter.,The Veteran's right upper extremity radiculopathy is currently rated at 40 percent and left upper extremity radiculopathy is currently rated at 40 percent.

The Board dismissed all pending appeals due to the appellant's withdrawal of her appeal.

The Veteran's right hip disability was rated at 30 percent from November 1, 2009 to May 16, 2017 and has not met the criteria for a higher rating since then.

The Veteran's left hip disability is service connected as a manifestation of his already service-connected arthritis. The right foot osteoarthritis has been rated at the lowest possible level due to its current severity.

The Veteran's claims were denied across multiple issues, including service connection for various conditions and ratings for existing disabilities. The appeals are not about service connection at all.

The Veteran's service-connected left hip and lumbar spine disabilities, along with her mood disorder, have rendered her unemployable since July 3, 2008.

The Veteran withdrew their appeal, thus the case is dismissed.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed as she withdrew her claim for service connection for depression.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed back disability and bilateral hip disability.