Knee decisions — 2019

The Board has denied service connection for the Veteran's claimed right hip, right knee, left knee, right ankle, and left ankle conditions as secondary to his service-connected residuals of a left tibia fracture.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for various musculoskeletal and eye disabilities due to insufficient evidence of record. The claims are being returned for further development, including obtaining private treatment records and affording the Veteran with appropriate VA examinations.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left shoulder, lumbar spine, and right knee disorders are not related to service.,The Veteran's left foot disorder is remanded for further evaluation.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals regarding service connection for heart palpitations, dizziness, fatigue/irritability, bilateral knee disability, upper back disability, and tailbone disability due to a withdrawal of his appeal. The claims were not supported by evidence linking these conditions to active duty service.

The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeal as there was no valid 'freestanding' earlier effective date claim raised after a final RO decision on service connection for left knee osteoarthritis.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from maintaining substantially gainful employment.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for service connection for hemorrhoids and a right knee disorder due to incomplete service treatment records, lack of VA medical opinions addressing the etiology of his conditions, and need for additional SSA records.

The Board has granted service connection for low back, left knee, left hip, left foot, and left ankle conditions as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right knee disability.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a recurrent right knee disability is being remanded due to the need for additional medical examination and records review.

The Veteran's right knee osteoarthritis and enthesopathy, bilateral hearing loss, left shoulder disability, tinnitus, and cognitive disability (including Alzheimer's disease) are all granted as service-connected. The Veteran is also eligible for an automobile and/or specially adapted equipment.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral knee disability, secondary to his service-connected degenerative joint disease of the thoracolumbar spine.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his right knee instability is granted, but the case is remanded due to insufficient evidence in the March 2019 VA examination report.

The Board has decided to remand several issues related to the Veteran's claims, including her right ankle injury, bilateral foot and knee conditions, heart condition, hypertension, and sleep apnea. The decision also notes that additional evidence is needed for these cases.

The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral pes planus, joint pain of the knees and elbows, and sleep apnea are denied. The Board found that the evidence does not support a grant of service connection based on presumptions due to undiagnosed illness or chronic multi-symptom illnesses.

The Veteran's hemorrhoids are rated at 20 percent, effective from the date of claim. The right and left knee DJD with retropatellar arthralgia are each rated at 10 percent.

The Veteran's bilateral hip disability and other service-connected conditions have rendered him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment since December 4, 2008. His TDIU claim is granted.

The Board has restored service connection for left knee DJD and granted a 10 percent rating, effective June 7, 2002. The original grant was based on direct evidence of the condition in service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right knee disability and left knee disability as secondary to right knee disability due to lack of aggravation by service, and because his current disabilities were not proximately due to or aggravated beyond its natural progression by a service-connected disability.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for osteoarthritis of the right knee and chondrocalcinosis of the left knee were denied. The claim for an increased rating for PTSD was also remanded.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, fatigue, and residuals of a left shoulder injury. Effective dates earlier than October 10, 2017, were also denied for the grant of service connection for right knee degenerative arthritis and left knee degenerative arthritis.