Knee decisions — 2010

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current left and right knee disabilities are related to his military service, granting service connection for both conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to the RO for further development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling an appropriate VA examination. The case may be referred for consideration of assignment of an extraschedular rating under 38 C.F.R. § 3.321(b).

The Board has determined that the Veteran's degenerative joint disease of both hips and knees was incurred during his period of active service, with reasonable doubt resolved in favor of the Veteran.

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities did not have their onset during active service or result from disease or injury in service. Therefore, the claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's right knee disability is manifested by pain, crepitus, and limited motion to 100 degrees of flexion and 0 degrees of extension. The Board found the evidence insufficient for an evaluation in excess of 10 percent.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral hearing loss, back disability, left knee disability, and ulcer to allow for additional development. The claims will be considered on the basis of the evidence of record.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding service connection for left knee and right ankle disorders. The Veteran is to be scheduled for a VA examination to determine if any current disabilities are related to service.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for a sleep disorder, increased ratings for osteoarthritis of the left knee and plantar fasciitis of the left foot with degenerative changes. The case has been remanded to obtain VA treatment records, provide new examinations, and determine the current severity of his disabilities.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the etiology of the Veteran's claimed disabilities and whether they are related to service. The case will be remanded for a VA examination.

The Board found that there is no evidence to support the Veteran's claims of service connection for a left knee disability and left knee scar, including as secondary to his service-connected left hip disabilities. The VA examiner opined that any opinion relating these conditions to service or service-connected disabilities would be speculative.

The Board has denied the reopening of claims for service connection for arteriosclerotic heart disease, bilateral knee disability, lumbar spine disability, diabetes mellitus, and sleep apnea due to lack of new and material evidence.

The Board has determined that the reduction of the rating for right knee arthritis from 20 to 10 percent was proper, and granted an increased rating for left knee arthritis.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his right ankle strain, right knee bipartite patella, and thoracolumbar spine strain are being remanded due to the need for additional development including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional evidence and examination, including SSA disability records and VA treatment records.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a right leg and knee disability is denied. The Board finds no evidence of any current right leg or knee problems during his periods of active duty, nor has the Veteran presented competent medical evidence linking any current disabilities to service. For PTSD, the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent prior to March 5, 2009 is denied as there are no symptoms that warrant such a rating. The Veteran's claim for increased evaluation for PTSD from March 5, 2009 onwards is granted with a 70 percent evaluation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for back, right shoulder, left knee, and right knee disorders due to a lack of evidence showing current disability or continuity of symptomatology since service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings for right and left knee disabilities were denied. The RO assigned a noncompensable rating for the knee disabilities prior to July 10, 2007, and a separate compensable rating of 10 percent thereafter.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings have been denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for any of his service-connected conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and Social Security Administration records. The appellant should be provided with a VA examination to determine if his left leg above-the-knee amputation is related to service, specifically the truck accident in service. Additionally, notice of what evidence is necessary to substantiate a secondary service connection claim should be provided.

The Veteran's preexisting bilateral knee condition was aggravated by active duty military service. The right shoulder disorder is not related to active military service, and hypertension may not be presumed to have been incurred due to the nature of the exposure basis provided. Diabetes mellitus developed prior to the Veteran's period of active duty in question (i.e., from January 2003 to July 2003) and did not increase in severity during active service.