Knee decisions — 2013

The Board found no evidence to support the Veteran's claims of service connection for back, neck, left shoulder, and right shoulder disabilities as secondary to his service-connected left knee disability. The diagnoses were not related to the service-connected condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for asthma, peripheral neuropathy, joint disease of the hands and knees, and diabetes mellitus type II as secondary to exposure to asbestos. The Veteran was not exposed to herbicides or other Agent Orange compounds during his military service.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral knee disorder, bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, and sacroiliac disorder. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions are related to his military service.

The Veteran's claims for higher ratings and effective dates have been granted, with the effective date set at August 24, 2005.

The Board found no evidence to support service connection for the Veteran's right knee disability, concluding that it is not related to his military service. The depression and pain disorder claims were granted.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination and consideration of her TDIU claim.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an increased rating for lumbar spine spondylosis and also denied his attempt to reopen a previously denied claim of service connection for arthritis, bilateral knees. The evidence submitted did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating either claim.

The Board found that the Veteran's right and left knee disabilities do not warrant a rating in excess of 10 percent, as they do not meet the criteria for more severe disability ratings under VA's rating schedule.

The Veteran's claim for chronic fatigue syndrome was denied as there is no evidence of a causal relationship to service. The left knee disability claim was remanded due to procedural issues.

The Board finds that the Veteran's arthritis of the left shoulder, left knee, and bilateral ankles are not due to any incident of his active duty service.

The Veteran's osteoarthritis of the left knee is currently rated at 10 percent, and her limitation of extension of the left knee is rated at 50 percent. Both ratings are effective June 10, 2011.

The Board found that the Veteran's left knee disability is not related to his military service and denied the claim.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, chronic headaches, right knee condition, peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities, and lumbar disc disease with left radiculopathy are granted. The Veteran is also awarded a non-compensable rating for his eczema prior to February 25, 2013, and a compensable rating thereafter.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for left patellofemoral syndrome is denied as the evidence does not show that his disability warrants a rating higher than 10 percent.,A 10 percent rating for left knee instability from December 1, 2008, is granted. The Veteran's claim for a higher rating since then is denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right and left knee disabilities were not incurred or aggravated during his military service, nor may they be presumed to have been incurred in service. The VA examiners did not adequately consider the Veteran's descriptions of symptoms and injury during combat.

The Board found that the Veteran's current right knee disabilities, including a torn ACL and degenerative arthritis, are not related to his active military service.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and arranging for a medical examination.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral knee disorder did not manifest during service or within one year thereafter and is not causally related to his military service. As a result, the claim for service connection was denied.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of any of the disabilities listed in his claims, and therefore service connection is denied.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for a right knee disorder. The Board has determined that additional development, including obtaining medical records and arranging for an examination, is necessary to properly adjudicate his claim.