Knee decisions — 2013

The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities were not incurred or aggravated by service, and denied both claims.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for acquired psychiatric disability, bilateral eye disability, prominent submandibular salivary glands, and left knee disability. The evidence did not support a finding of service connection in any of these cases.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral knee disorder and bilateral hip disorder, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss, left knee disorder, and right knee disorder. The Board found that there was no evidence of a nexus between these conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his claimed disabilities.

The Board has granted a 20 percent rating for the Veteran's service-connected lumbosacral strain, but denied any increase in rating for his left knee disability.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have current disabilities for which service connection can be granted, specifically a neck disability, right knee disability, left knee disability, or left shoulder disability. The claims were denied.

The Veteran's service-connected right knee disability has been manifested by degenerative arthritis, with flexion limited to a noncompensable degree and without lateral instability or recurrent subluxation. The criteria for a rating in excess of 10 percent have not been met during the appeal periods.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for instability and limitation of motion of both knees, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating under applicable diagnostic codes.

The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability and determined that new evidence supports this reopening. The Veteran does not have any of the claimed conditions, including back, knee, foot, elbow, hearing loss, tinnitus, diabetes mellitus type 2, heart disease, or psychiatric disorders, that were incurred in or aggravated by his service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's PTSD is related to his service, and he is granted service connection for this condition. The right shoulder disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service, but is presumed due to a post-service injury. The right knee disability is also not linked to service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his left knee disability, finding that prior to October 18, 2010, the disability did not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent. Since December 1, 2011, the disability was rated at 30 percent.

The Veteran's left knee disability, characterized by post-traumatic arthritic pain and stiffness with no limitation of extension or instability, does not warrant a rating higher than the current 10%.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current knee and back conditions are not related to his military service, and thus denied his claims for service connection.

The Veteran's service-connected right knee disability is rated at 10 percent, effective March 11, 2010. The claim for increased rating and TDIU are denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a right knee disability due to an in-service injury or event, and there is no evidence of arthritis within one year of service. The claim for service connection for a right knee disability is denied.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for various disabilities, including hearing loss and spine conditions, were denied as there was no evidence of in-service injury or disease that would support the current diagnoses.,Service connection could not be established for any of the claimed disabilities due to a lack of credible evidence linking them to service.

The Board denied service connection for a left knee disorder and a low back disorder, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not causally related to his military service.

The Veteran's right knee disability is currently rated at 10 percent, and his PTSD is rated at 30 percent. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for either condition.

The VA determined that the Veteran's service-connected right knee degenerative joint disease does not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent, as it did not result in actual limitation of motion or functional loss due to pain.