Knee decisions — 2005

The Board has granted service connection for arthritis of the hands, knees, and cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine as aggravated by active service.

The Board has granted a 10 percent disability rating for degenerative arthritis of the left knee, effective from the date of the initial grant of service connection. The claim for increased evaluation for left knee instability remains denied.

The Board has granted an increased rating to 30 percent for residuals of left knee injury with traumatic arthritis and limitation of motion, extension, effective from April 14, 2004. The veteran's claim for a compensable rating for the flexion component is denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's left knee scar does not result in any functional limitation of his left knee or leg, and therefore, does not warrant a separate compensable evaluation.

The veteran's right knee disability is manifested by noticeable right quadriceps atrophy, monthly flare-ups, lack of endurance, pain on motion, and functional impairment. The Board has determined that the criteria for a 20 percent rating for limitation of motion of the right knee have been met.

The Board has remanded the case for further VA examination and review of the claims file to determine if there is a relationship between the veteran's bilateral knee disability and his military service.

The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for left knee, lumbar spine, cervical spine and left ankle disorders due to lack of evidence showing these conditions were incurred or aggravated during periods of active duty training.

The Board has granted service connection for gout, but denied the remaining issues of cervical spine disability, cardiovascular disability, bilateral shoulder arthritis, and bilateral knee arthritis. The veteran's gout is considered to have originated during service.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected disabilities did not contribute to his death, and denied the claim for service connection for cause of the veteran's death.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for scheduling a Travel Board hearing. The issues on appeal are related to reopening claims of service connection for low back disorder, bilateral flatfoot, and right knee disorder.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and the need for a VA examination to determine if the veteran's right knee injury is related to service.

The veteran's left knee instability is currently rated at 10 percent, effective March 9, 2001. The temporary total rating for convalescence following ACL reconstruction surgery was granted until December 31, 1994.

The Board found that DJD of both knees was not incurred in or aggravated by active service, nor may it be presumed to have been incurred in or aggravated by active service.

The veteran's right knee disorders, including degenerative changes and instability, have been rated based on their current manifestations. The most recent rating of 20 percent for instability was assigned effective from October 26, 2004.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his left and right knee disabilities, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation under applicable VA rating criteria.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his left and right knee disabilities, as well as service connection for back and hip disabilities secondary to his knee conditions.

The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for a right knee condition secondary to his left knee arthritis and orthopedic hardware of proximal left fibula, as well as an increased rating for left knee instability. The evidence did not support these claims.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed left knee disorder is not related to his military service and denied his claim.

The Board denied increased evaluations for the veteran's left and right knee disabilities, currently rated at 10 percent each.

The Board has granted service connection for chondromalacia patella of the left and right knees, assigning an initial 10 percent disability rating to each knee.