Knee decisions — 2006

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for residuals of a left knee injury but denied the claim as there is no competent evidence linking the current disability to active service.

The VA determined that the veteran's knee disabilities do not warrant a higher rating than 10 percent for either knee.

The veteran's left knee disability, which was rated as 100 percent disabling effective July 28, 2004, has been increased to a 60 percent rating effective September 1, 2005.,The right knee disability remains at a 10 percent rating.

The Board has determined that the veteran's chondromalacia of the right knee does not meet or approximate the criteria for a disability rating higher than 10 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for lung and heart conditions, flat feet, left ankle disability, DJD of the right knee, and dermatitis due to mustard gas exposure. The claims were not reopened as new and material evidence was not provided.

The veteran's service-connected right knee disorder is associated with a lumbar spine disorder and cervical spine disorder, both of which are secondary to the right knee. The veteran does not have a direct service connection for his cervical spine disorder.

The Board has determined that the veteran's diagnosed degenerative joint disease of the lumbar and cervical spine, bilateral hearing loss, and respiratory disorder are not related to his military service. The veteran's left knee disability is also not linked to service.

The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder, as well as increased ratings for right and left knee disabilities. The veteran's current psychiatric disorder was not found to be caused by or permanently worsened by his service-connected post-traumatic headaches and right and left knee disabilities. His right and left knee disabilities were rated at 20 percent each based on arthritis with some limitation of motion, but no instability.

The Board has determined that the veteran's low back and right knee conditions were not incurred or aggravated by active duty military service, nor may arthritis be presumed to have been incurred therein.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development to determine the nature and severity of his right shoulder, knee, and ankle disabilities, as well as whether any current disabilities are related to service or other factors.

The Board has determined that there is no evidence of a left knee disorder in service or any applicable presumptive period, and no competent evidence of a nexus between the veteran's current left knee disorder and his period of active service. Therefore, the claim for service connection for a left knee disorder is denied.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current bilateral knee disabilities are not related to his military service and have denied his claim for service connection.

The veteran's claim for an increased rating for residuals of a total left knee replacement is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination and proper VCAA notification.

The Board has granted the application to reopen and remanded the claim of service connection for a bilateral knee disability. The veteran's new evidence, including his hearing testimony, supports reopening the claim based on the submission of new and material evidence.

The VA denied the veteran's request for higher initial evaluations for his postoperative left knee surgery residuals and arthritis, with a rating of 10 percent effective from the date of separation from service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for higher ratings for chronic instability of the left knee and traumatic arthritis of the left knee, finding that the evidence did not support a rating in excess of 10 percent.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for Hepatitis C and an increased evaluation for lumbar spine degenerative disc disease, finding no evidence of a direct relationship to service. The claim for increased evaluations for post-traumatic osteoarthritis of the knees was not addressed in this decision.

The Board has determined that the veteran's claimed left hip, knee, ankle, and foot disabilities are not related to his active service.

The veteran's appeal is remanded to provide VA examinations for his claimed conditions and determine if service connection should be granted.

The Board found that the veteran's service-connected right knee disability did not present an exceptional or unusual picture with marked interference with employment, and thus denied entitlement to an extraschedular evaluation.