Knee decisions — 2017

The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional examination and medical opinions.

The Veteran's cervical spine, lumbar spine, and bilateral knee disabilities are being remanded for additional examinations to determine their etiology. The claims will be reconsidered after the new evidence is obtained.

The Board has remanded the case due to issues with notification and scheduling of a VA examination, as well as obtaining relevant medical records. The Veteran's claim for service connection for his left knee condition will be reconsidered based on the additional evidence obtained.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for a right knee disorder, right shoulder disorder, and right ankle disorder. The evidence did not support finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current knee and foot disabilities did not manifest during her active service or any period of ACDUTRA/INACDUTRA, and thus cannot be granted on a direct basis. The Board also found no evidence of chronicity of symptoms within one year after separation from active duty.

The Board has ordered a new VA opinion to determine if the Veteran's hip and knee disabilities are caused or aggravated by his service-connected back disability. The case is remanded for this purpose.

The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for a right hip disability, right knee disability, and erectile dysfunction due to inadequate medical opinions and failure to issue a statement of the case on these issues.

The Veteran's left knee disability warrants a 20 percent rating prior to February 19, 2014 for recurrent subluxation or lateral instability. From April 15, 2015, the Veteran is entitled to a 60 percent rating for his prosthetic replacement of the left knee joint.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection of his back strain, left knee disability, and right knee disability as secondary to a service-connected left ankle disability. The decision also addressed bilateral tinnitus and right-ear hearing loss but did not explicitly address left-ear hearing loss.

The Board found that the Veteran's current right knee disability is not etiologically related to his active service and arthritis of the right knee did not manifest within one year of separation from active service. The Veteran's right eye disability has been manifested by objective findings of uncorrected distance vision of 20/40 or better.

The Veteran's service-connected chondromalacia of the right knee patella does not prevent him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has determined that the Veteran did not have a right knee or left knee disability that was caused by his military service, and thus denied both claims for service connection.

The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of recent treatment records and for consideration of whether the Veteran's service-connected low back disability may have caused or aggravated his bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right and left knee disabilities, as well as a claim for a left ankle disability, are denied. The claims were not granted because the evidence did not support the assignment of higher ratings under applicable rating criteria.

The Veteran's arthritis of the shoulders, back, hands, and knees was not found to be related to his military service or herbicide exposure. The Board denied service connection for these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination for his left knee disability and issuance of a statement of the case regarding service connection (for VA compensation purposes) for teeth #8 and #9.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess the severity of his right ankle disability and an opinion on whether his current right knee disability is secondary to his service-connected right ankle disability.

The Veteran's appeal involves claims for service connection and increased ratings related to his right foot and hand disabilities, as well as a TDIU claim. The case is being remanded due to the need to obtain Social Security Administration records and additional VA examinations.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including a new VA examination to assess the severity of his left ankle disability and opinions regarding secondary service connection for his left knee disorder and bilateral hip disorder.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to schedule a Travel Board hearing at a local VA office.