Knee decisions — 2000

The veteran's claim of entitlement to payment or reimbursement for unauthorized medical services provided during his hospitalizations is denied as not well-grounded because the treatment was not for a service-connected disability.

The Board has granted a 10 percent rating for the veteran's residuals of left knee strain, effective from the date of claim. The issue regarding service connection for an eye disability is still pending and will be reopened if new and material evidence is submitted.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and a compensable evaluation for his orthopedic disability of the left knee, onychomycosis of the right foot, and scars. The veteran is entitled to a statement of the case regarding his claim to reopen a skin disorder of the left foot.

The Board found that the veteran's claim of service connection for a bilateral knee disorder was not well-grounded and denied it.

The Board denied claims for service connection for COPD and asthma, a bilateral knee disorder, and the cause of the veteran's death due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to his period of active service or exposure to ionizing radiation.

The VA denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected chondromalacia of the left and right knees, as there was no evidence of recurrent subluxation or lateral instability in either knee.

The Board of Veterans' Appeals has denied the veteran's claim for service connection for left knee osteopenia as a result of her service-connected removal of a left knee neurolipoma, finding that there is no medical evidence establishing a nexus between the two.

The Board found that there is no competent medical evidence linking the veteran's numbness of the right foot to his service-connected right knee injury, and thus denied the claim for secondary service connection.

The Board has granted service connection for early left knee degenerative joint disease as secondary to the veteran's service-connected residuals of a shell fragment wound to the left thigh. The rating assigned is 10 percent for the residuals of the shell fragment wound, and the hearing loss disability remains noncompensably disabling.

The veteran's death was not caused by his own willful misconduct. The Board found that the veteran did not meet the criteria for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 as he did not have a right to receive total service-connected disability compensation from VA for at least 10 years prior to his death.

The veteran's cervical spine disability with left arm radiculopathy is currently rated as 20 percent disabling, and the Board finds that a higher rating of 60 percent is warranted. The right knee arthritis is not compensable under current criteria, while the left knee arthritis warrants an increased rating to 20 percent. Genital herpes does not warrant a compensable evaluation.

The VA Board denied increased ratings for the veteran's service-connected right and left knee disorders, finding that the current ratings adequately reflect the severity of his disabilities.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected left knee disability is being remanded due to the need for additional medical records and information regarding work absences.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claim for service connection for arthritis of the lumbosacral spine is not well-grounded, as there is no competent medical evidence linking this condition to his military service or any other service-connected disorder. The claim for increased evaluation for arthralgia remains pending.

The veteran's PTSD results in total occupational and social impairment, and he is unemployable due to his service-connected disabilities. The Board finds that the veteran meets the criteria for a 100 percent schedular rating for PTSD under both old and new criteria.

The veteran's appeal has been withdrawn by the appellant, resulting in the dismissal of the case.

The Board has determined that there is no competent medical evidence showing a nexus between the above-the-knee amputation of the left lower extremity and treatment rendered by VA, thus denying the veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his knee and gout disabilities, as well as service connection for diabetes mellitus and a skin condition claimed due to Agent Orange exposure. The evidence did not support these claims.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for reopening his service connection claims and for secondary service connection, finding no new and material evidence to support these claims. The appeals were dismissed as without legal merit.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not have a chronic left knee disability or irritable bowel syndrome that was incurred in service. The evaluation for irritable bowel syndrome remains at 10 percent.