Hip Board decisions

The Board has reopened the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right hip disability and granted it, finding that the condition is secondary to his service-connected bilateral knee disability. The left hip disability was also found to be secondary to his service-connected bilateral knee disability.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection for Hanta Virus, IBS, anemia (claimed as blood thinning), left ear disability, skin disability, and leishmaniasis were withdrawn prior to the Board making a decision.

The Veteran's claim for a clothing allowance was denied as there is no documented provision of a manual wheelchair or other qualifying prosthetic or orthopedic appliance that tends to wear or tear his clothing, and the medications prescribed do not cause irreparable damage to his outergarments.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right arm, burned right hip, and burned right leg conditions. The preponderance of evidence is against a finding of current disabilities related to these issues.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been denied as the evidence is not in equipoise and does not support a finding of service connection for any of the conditions listed.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for appropriate examinations to determine the etiology of his claimed conditions. The claims are not ready for appellate review due to incomplete record and procedural defects.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to incomplete rationale in a previous VA opinion regarding the Veteran's leg length discrepancy and its relationship to his service-connected right knee disability, as well as the potential aggravation of other disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's sleep apnea was not incurred in or aggravated by active military service. The preponderance of the evidence fails to establish a relationship between his current sleep apnea and his service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current back and hip disabilities are not related to service, and thus denied both claims.

The Board has ordered a remand due to the need for clarification of the nature and etiology of any current right hip disability, including whether it is related to service-connected right wrist disability.

The Board has found that there are missing components necessary to adjudicate the Veteran's appeals, including a Statement of the Case (SOC) and VA Form 9. The case is REMANDED for further development.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left knee disability is caused by favoring her left leg due to her service-connected right hip disability, and thus grants service connection for this condition as secondary to her right hip disability.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn by the appellant through his authorized representative.

The Veteran's right knee strain has not resulted in symptoms more nearly approximating compensable limitation of flexion or extension, recurrent subluxation, lateral instability, other impairment, ankylosis, or dislocated semilunar cartilage. There is no arthritis in the right knee.

The Veteran's right hip disability is not shown, and the Board finds no basis for service connection.,Service connection for tinnitus has been granted as it is reasonably shown to be related to noise trauma in service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have any of the claimed conditions and therefore, service connection for PTSD, stomach disability, thoracolumbar spine disability, cervical spine disability, bilateral hand disability, bilateral wrist disability, bilateral ankle disability, left knee disability, traumatic head/brain injury, right shoulder disability, bilateral hip disability, or left inguinal hernia, status-post surgical repair is denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's lumbar spine disability is not related to his active service and therefore denied service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied as the evidence did not establish a link between his current disabilities and his military service.

The Veteran's claims for a right knee disability, back disability, and bilateral hip disabilities have been denied as the evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to service or a service-connected condition.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of August 27, 2001, for the grant of service connection for anxiety with PTSD has been granted.