Knee decisions — 2004

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining service medical records and arranging for a VA examination to determine the etiology of the veteran's claimed disabilities.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has not been presented to reopen the veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis of the shoulders and a left knee disability. As such, these claims remain denied.

The veteran's appeal is remanded for further development, including a VA examination to assess the severity of his right leg fragment wound residuals.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling the veteran for orthopedic and peripheral vascular examinations.

The veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating are being remanded due to inadequate development of the record, including obtaining pertinent medical records.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and TDIU due to a lack of evidence supporting his claimed conditions as being related to undiagnosed illness during Gulf War service.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development and consideration of the veteran's claims, including service connection for a low back disability and an increased rating for left knee disability.

The veteran's bilateral knee disorder, diagnosed as patellofemoral syndrome, was incurred during his active service. The Board found sufficient evidence of continuity of symptomatology to connect the current condition with his military service.

The veteran's claim for TDIU is being remanded due to unclear determination of the cause of his unemployability and need for further development.

The Board has reopened the claim due to new evidence, but still denies service connection for a right knee disability as it is not related to military service.

The RO denied the veteran's claim for an increased disability evaluation for his service-connected right knee disability, currently rated at ten percent.

The veteran's claims for higher initial disability ratings for his right knee injury, tension headaches with cervical pain, hemorrhoids, and allergic dermatitis were denied. The RO found that the evidence did not support a compensable rating for any of these conditions.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the veteran's left knee disability is secondary to his service-connected right knee disability. The RO must provide an additional VA examination and obtain a medical opinion on this issue.

The Board finds that there is a further VA duty to assist the veteran in developing evidence pertinent to his applications to reopen claims for service connection, particularly regarding his left knee, left hip, and low back disabilities.

The veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to procedural issues and the need for additional development.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for gout and degenerative joint disease of the knees, finding that there was no direct evidence linking these conditions to his active military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete service records and requests for further examination.

Your appeal of the denial of service connection for left and right knee disorders, as well as a left hip disorder, has been dismissed due to lack of timely filing of a substantive appeal.

The veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his service-connected chronic lumbar strain and right knee chondromalacia are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions and evidence.

The Board has granted a disability rating of 20 percent for the veteran's service-connected right knee disability, finding that it more nearly approximates moderate knee disability. The back and left knee disabilities are not found to be related to the service-connected right knee disability.