Knee decisions — 2012

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development due to ambiguity surrounding the etiology of any current bilateral knee pathology.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's September 1, 2009 substantive appeal was not timely filed and thus his claims were denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left and right knee disorders, including arthritis, were not incurred in or aggravated by service. The disorders are also not proximately due to, the result of, or aggravated by service-connected lumbar myositis.

The Board denied service connection for PTSD and an extraschedular evaluation for right knee disability. The Veteran's claim of entitlement to individual unemployability benefits is remanded.

The Veteran's left knee arthritis is rated at 20 percent since March 11, 2011. Prior to that date, the disability was rated as 10 percent for limitation of motion and 30 percent for instability.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for a left foot disability was granted, and he is now receiving the maximum schedular rating available. The Board also granted his claims for service connection for various orthopedic disabilities and anxiety disorder, as well as TDIU.

The Board is remanding the claims for further development due to the need to obtain additional medical records and personnel/administrative records from Fort Ord Medical Clinic, as well as a VA examination regarding the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral knee disability.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for scheduling an additional hearing before a Veterans Law Judge at the Boston RO. The claims will be returned to the Board following completion of this action.

The Board found that the Veteran's additional disabilities were not caused by VA treatment, and thus denied his claims under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for a more contemporaneous VA examination to determine the current severity of his left and right knee disabilities.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to the RO for a new VA examination and consideration of whether separate ratings are warranted due to his service-connected right knee disability and left knee disability.

The Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been withdrawn prior to the Board making a decision.

The Board has granted service connection for hypothyroidism and Hashimoto's thyroiditis, but denied service connection for obesity. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, lumbar spine disability, and bilateral knee disabilities are not considered to be directly related to his military service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a Travel Board hearing. The case will not be decided on the merits of his service connection claim until after this hearing.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral hip disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and lumbar spine disorder have been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal. The claim of service connection for a psychiatric condition has been granted.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current bilateral degenerative arthritis of the knees is related to active military service and grants entitlement to service connection for this condition. The evidence does not support a finding of a current diagnosis of a bilateral ankle disability, but the claim will be granted as there is no clear and unmistakable error in denying it.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and readjudication due to a previous decision denying service connection for left knee degenerative joint disease. The Veteran maintains that his current left knee difficulties are attributable to his military service, including parachute landings and a helicopter crash in 1978.

The Board has ordered a remand to clarify the etiology of the Veteran's claimed left knee and left ankle disabilities, as well as address the nature and etiology of any corresponding diagnosis of migratory polyarthralgia.

The Board has remanded the claims for further development and consideration, including a VA compensation examination to address the etiology of the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities. The examiner was instructed to consider both direct service connection and secondary service connection theories.

The Veteran's service-connected left and right knee disabilities have been granted increased ratings of 20 percent effective March 22, 2011.