Knee decisions — 2010

The Board finds that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and right knee disorder are due to disease or injury incurred in service, granting service connection for both conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for issuance of a SOC addressing his claims and readjudication.

The Veteran seeks service connection for right and left knee osteoarthritis. The Board finds that the exact dates of any Active Duty, ACDUTRA, or INACDUTRA periods need to be verified and correlated with the documented diagnoses of patellofemoral syndrome and osteoarthritis of the knees in the medical records.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to address the etiology of his low back and right knee complaints and the severity of his left knee disability.

The Board found that the Veteran's claimed conditions were not related to his military service and denied all of his claims.

The Veteran's right knee strain with degenerative changes and chondromalacia is currently rated at 10 percent, which reflects the severity of his symptoms. The Veteran's right knee instability has not been found to warrant a higher rating.

The Veteran's left knee disability is manifested by limitation of flexion, but not to less than 45 degrees. The disability does not result in locking, lateral instability, or recurrent subluxations. Therefore, the claim for a higher rating for the left knee disability is denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including right and left knee disabilities, COPD, adenomyosis, pes planus, neck disability, and psychiatric disorder (PTSD), were denied as there is no current diagnosis of any of these conditions. The Board found that the Veteran did not have a current diagnosis of any of these conditions.

The Veteran's right knee disability was previously rated at 30 percent prior to May 19, 2009. As of that date, the VA determined a 60 percent rating is warranted due to chronic severely painful motion and other symptoms.

The Board found no relationship between the Veteran's service and his current left hip and knee disabilities, thus denying both claims.

The Board has granted service connection for a headache disorder and torn medial meniscus, right knee, synovitis, chondrolysis, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are at least as likely as not related to his military service.

The Veteran's right knee disorder is currently rated at 10 percent, and his hemorrhoids are assigned a noncompensable rating. The Board found that the evidence did not support an increased rating for either condition.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected knee and back disabilities were denied, but he was granted a 10% rating for thoracolumbar strain.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to obtain additional records and conduct further examinations related to his service-connected right and left knee patellofemoral syndrome.

The Veteran's claim for higher initial ratings for atopic dermatitis was denied. The RO increased the disability rating from 10% to 30%, effective April 2006.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including scheduling a VA examination to determine if the nature and etiology of any knee disability is related to service. The appellant's claim remains denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a Travel Board hearing to be scheduled at the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania VARO.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left knee chondromalacia patella does not warrant a higher initial evaluation from noncompensable to 10% since August 1, 2006. The evidence shows no limitation of motion or arthritis in the knee joint.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left knee disability is service-connected, but her right knee disability was not aggravated by military service and therefore is not service-connected.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including scheduling new VA examinations and obtaining his VA medical records from November 2009 to the present.