Knee decisions — 2014

The Board has granted service connection for the appellant's knee and shoulder disorders, but determined that no effective date earlier than September 13, 2007 can be assigned as the claims were not filed within one year of separation from active duty.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have a current left ankle disability and denied service connection for this condition. The claims of service connection for right knee, low back, and hypertension were also denied as secondary to his service-connected left knee disorder.

The Board is remanding the case to the RO for further consideration of new evidence submitted by the appellant, including VA and private treatment records.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling examinations to assess the severity of his lumbar spine and right knee disabilities.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for various knee, hip, ankle and foot disabilities, neck disability, low back disability, and arthritis disability, all claimed as secondary to a right knee disability. The evidence does not support a finding that any of these conditions are related to military service.

The Board found no evidence of service connection for the claimed conditions, including multiple myeloma and its related disabilities. The Veteran's claims were denied.

The Board denied secondary service connection for a left hip disability and granted increased ratings for residuals of injury to the left forearm, as well as separate compensable ratings for neuralgia of the radial and median nerves in the left arm.

The Veteran's right knee disability, characterized by limitation of motion and instability, has been rated at 10 percent since October 24, 2006. The claim for a TDIU as due to service-connected right knee disability is granted.

The Veteran's claims for increased evaluations of his service-connected right knee disabilities are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including a VA examination.

The Veteran's left knee disability is rated at 60 percent, effective from the date of the initial evaluation. The right knee disability prior to October 11, 2007, was rated at 20 percent; since December 1, 2008, it has been rated at 60 percent.

The Veteran's claims for bilateral knee disability, wrist disability, heart disability, hypertension, cold injury residuals, jaw injury residuals, and glaucoma were denied as they are not related to service or cannot be presumed due to the passage of time.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining VA treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for a VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and low back disabilities.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied, and the appeal is dismissed due to withdrawal of the claim of entitlement to service connection for shingles.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to assess the severity of his right knee osteoarthritis and whether he has a left knee disability related to service or secondary to his right knee condition. The TDIU claim will also be addressed.

The Veteran's left knee chondromalacia is currently rated at 10 percent, the maximum schedular rating available. The Board finds no evidence of more than moderate limitation of motion or instability warranting a higher evaluation.

The Board has determined that the September 1994 rating decision is not final due to new service department records being associated with the record in May 2009. The case is now remanded for further action including obtaining specific dates of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA, SSA records, and a VA orthopedic examination.

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the etiology of his left knee disability and diabetes mellitus.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to properly adjudicate the Veteran's claims, including obtaining updated medical examinations and records.

The Veteran's initial claim of service connection for keratosis pilaris was granted with a 60 percent rating effective August 16, 2010.,Prior to August 16, 2010, the Veteran was assigned a 10 percent rating for his varicose veins of both lower extremities. After this date, he received a 40 percent rating for each leg.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for a VA examination and additional treatment records. The case will be readjudicated based on all evidence.