Knee decisions — 2009

The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his right knee disorder and his cardiovascular conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is granted, and he is now rated at 10 percent for lateral instability of the left knee.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased evaluations and service connection for arthritis of the left knee, left hip, right hip, and right knee. The decision also noted that the Veteran had slight recurrent subluxation or lateral instability in his right knee, effusion into the joint, and limited and painful motion with clinical findings of degenerative joint disease.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for erectile dysfunction, degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, right hip strain with residuals, patellofemoral syndrome of the left knee, and patellofemoral syndrome of the right knee were denied. The claim for SMC based on need for aid and attendance or being housebound was withdrawn by the Veteran. The claims for vocational rehabilitation benefits, specially adapted housing, and TDIU due to service-connected disability were also withdrawn.

The Veteran is seeking an increased disability rating for his service-connected left tibia stress fracture and associated left knee chondromalacia. The case has been remanded due to the need for additional evidentiary development, including obtaining private examination reports.

The Board denied the Veteran's request to reopen his claim for service connection of a right knee disorder and also denied an increased rating for his left wrist fracture.

The Board has granted service connection for degenerative joint disease of the right knee and assigned a 10 percent disability evaluation effective from October 18, 2008. The Veteran's appeal remains in appellate status as he is seeking an increased evaluation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral knee disability, low back disability, and bilateral hearing loss due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board found that the Veteran's current right knee osteoarthritis did not have its onset in service and is unrelated to his period of active duty. The claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's left knee disability, postoperative residuals of a knee injury, is currently rated at 20 percent and the claim for an increased rating has been denied.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not meet the criteria for higher evaluations or service connection in all cases.

The Board has granted the Veteran's petition to reopen his claim for service connection for a right knee disorder and will now consider the merits of this claim. The Veteran is entitled to an increased rating for his right knee condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection of a right knee disorder and an increased evaluation for his left knee degenerative joint disease. The extension of a temporary total evaluation for convalescence following left knee surgery was also denied.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for right knee traumatic arthritis with instability was granted, effective from February 22, 2001.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have any of the claimed conditions related to his active service. The claims for sinusitis, nervous condition with tremors, rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes mellitus, neck injury, right ankle injury, left knee injury, and numbness of the head are all denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current hearing loss or right knee disability related to service, and thus denied his claims for service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service connection claims for right and left knee disabilities, to include patellofemoral pain syndrome, are denied as there is no evidence of a nexus between his current conditions and active service.

The Veteran's initial compensable evaluations for left and right knee strain have been granted, but the Board finds that further development is needed due to potential increase in severity of her disabilities since the last VA examination.

The Veteran's bilateral knee disability is aggravated by his service-connected bilateral pes planus, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.