Knee decisions — 2015

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development to verify his service dates and obtain a VA examination to determine if his hypertension and right leg condition are related to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied reopening the claim for service connection of a back disability, to include as secondary to bilateral knee disabilities. The Veteran's right and left knee disabilities have been assigned separate ratings under various diagnostic codes.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have current disabilities of a left thumb or left knee, and therefore service connection cannot be granted for these conditions.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's recurrent subluxation of the right sternoclavicular joint is secondary to her service-connected right knee disability and grants service connection for this condition.

The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to obtain an adequate medical opinion and examination regarding the Veteran's right knee disorder.

The Veteran's arthritis of the left knee is currently rated at 10 percent, and he also has a separate 10 percent rating for slight instability. The Board found that these ratings are appropriate based on the current evidence.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine if the Veteran's current bilateral knee disorder is related to his service. The case is therefore REMANDED for further action.

The Veteran's left and right knee disabilities have been rated at 20 percent each, effective May 19, 2008. His bilateral hearing loss has also been granted a non-compensable rating.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for TBI, bilateral hearing loss, left knee disability, and chemical burn of the left hand residuals have all been denied. The Board found no evidence of a current disability for VA purposes in any of these conditions.

The Veteran's left and right knee disabilities have been rated at the minimum (10%) level, as they do not meet criteria for a higher rating based on limitation of motion or instability.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining missing service records and VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's claimed conditions.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to insufficient examination reports and incomplete medical history review.

The Board has determined that there is no direct service connection for the Veteran's right and left knee conditions, as well as his back condition. The claims for fibromyalgia, sleep apnea, and migraine headaches have also been denied. However, new evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim for degenerative joint and disc disease of the lumbosacral spine.

The Veteran's bursitis of the bilateral hips and osteoarthritis with chondromalacia patella have been rated at 10 percent, but do not meet criteria for higher ratings.,For his right knee disability, including osteoarthritis and chondromalacia patella, a rating in excess of 10 percent is denied.

The Board denied service connection for a right foot disorder, bilateral hand disorder, and right knee disorder as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's military service.,There is no indication of any presumptive exposure or secondary service connection issues.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss has been rated as noncompensable since the effective date of service connection. The left knee disability was also rated as noncompensable, with a higher rating granted in March 2003. The claim for TDIU is denied.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings was granted, with a maximum disability rating of 60 percent assigned for his right total knee arthroplasty residuals including post-operative right knee chondromalacia and traumatic arthritic changes for the period on and after August 13, 2010.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates were denied. The Board also found that the April 1993 rating decision denying service connection for a right knee disability did not contain CUE.

The Board found that the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are not related to service, while his knee, hip, low back, and cervical spine disorders are related to service. The Veteran's claims for these conditions were denied.

The Board has ordered a remand for further development and an opinion regarding the Veteran's bilateral knee disability, including whether it is related to service.