Knee decisions — 2014

The Board has determined that the evidence is in relative equipoise with regard to whether the Veteran's bilateral ankle disorder, bilateral knee disorder, and lumbar spine disorder are secondary to his service-connected pes planus. As a result, these claims have been granted.

The Board has vacated the previous decision and granted the petition to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for a left knee disorder, finding new and material evidence.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a left knee disability, finding that it was not secondary to his service-connected right knee strain.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's cervical spine disability is service-connected, and new and material evidence has been received to reopen claims for left knee, low back, head injury residuals, and bilateral foot condition (cold injury residuals).

The Veteran's left hip degenerative joint disease was not manifested by thigh flexion limited to 30 degrees or thigh abduction with motion lost beyond 10 degrees between November 25, 2007 and April 2, 2012. The Veteran's right knee chondromalacia warranted a 10 percent rating.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and need for further examination regarding the appellant's bilateral knee disability and hearing loss.

The Board has dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's withdrawal of all pending appeals.

The Board found no evidence of a current disability related to service for back, ankle, or knee conditions and denied the Veteran's claims.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have current disabilities of the knees, back, or right ankle to support service connection claims.,VA examinations in June 2009 found no current diagnoses for any of the claimed conditions.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for further development due to new evidence submitted since the May 2010 Statement of the Case.

The Board granted an increased rating of 30 percent for the Veteran's right shoulder disability, effective since August 14, 2010. The previous evaluation was 20 percent.

The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 30 percent for his right total knee replacement is being remanded due to the need for additional examination and treatment records.

The Veteran's service connection claims for left foot drop with partial peroneal palsy, low back disability, and right upper extremity carpal tunnel syndrome have been withdrawn. The Veteran has a current neck disability that was likely incurred during service, and her service connection claim for a left knee disability is granted.,Prior to January 12, 2012, the Veteran's PTSD disability rating is increased to 70 percent.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination of her bilateral knee and left foot disabilities, as well as of her dishydrotic eczema. All relevant VA treatment records should also be associated with the claims file.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and scheduling a VA examination. The issues of service connection for various foot, ankle, and knee disabilities are on appeal.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating for PTSD or right ear hearing loss, and there was no evidence linking the current conditions to active service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected degenerative changes of the knees and left shoulder.

The Veteran requested to withdraw appeals for several conditions, including breathing disorder, pulmonary disorder, right thyroid nodule, left knee disorder, left ankle disorder, right ankle disorder, left elbow disorder, right elbow disorder, left arm cyst, right arm cyst, right shoulder condition, left shoulder condition, right wrist condition, left wrist condition, right hip condition, and left hip condition.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a right knee disorder was denied in June 2003 due to aggravation by his active service. The evidence received since then includes testimony from the Veteran stating that he aggravated his pre-service right knee disorder during his second period of service.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn, and the case is dismissed.

The Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for left and right knee disabilities, as well as bilateral hearing loss and a right shoulder disability, is being remanded due to the failure to show for scheduled VA examinations. The Board will provide another opportunity for the Veteran to attend these examinations.