Knee decisions — 2019

The Veteran's service connection claims for GERD, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and right knee degenerative joint disease have all been granted.

The Board has granted service connection for hypertension but denied service connection for left hip disability, right hip disability, and left knee disability.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's right and left knee disabilities are not related to his active service or a service-connected disability, leading to their denial of service connection.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed because the January 2019 rating decision is not eligible for review under VA’s modernized review system.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims of service connection for right and left knee disabilities due to inadequate rationale in a previous VA examination. The case is being returned for further development, including obtaining updated medical records and scheduling an additional VA examination.

The Board has remanded the claims due to incomplete actions and requests for a supplemental statement of the case.

The Board has denied service connection for a right knee disability and granted an initial rating of 10 percent for the Veteran's service-connected right index finger scar. The decision is remanded due to outstanding treatment records from the Savannah River Site.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further examination and opinion regarding his low back disorder, as well as a determination on service connection for the left knee disability.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence and need for further examination.

The Board has remanded the claims for right knee, left knee, right humerus, back, right ankle, left ankle, bunions of the bilateral feet, hammertoes of the right foot, hammertoes of the left foot, and pilonidal cyst conditions due to outstanding medical records from Kaiser Permanente and SSA records.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's appeals for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) due to her withdrawal of those claims during a July 2019 hearing. The remaining issues have been remanded.

The Board has remanded the issues of entitlement to service connection for right knee condition, left knee condition, coronary artery disease, hypertension, type II diabetes mellitus, obstructive sleep apnea, benign prostatic hypertrophy, and diverticulitis.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to the need for additional examinations and consideration of new evidence. The issues include hypertension, tinnitus, headaches, radiating pain in legs, an acquired psychiatric disorder (including depression), erectile dysfunction as secondary to hypertension, sleep apnea, chronic sinusitis, and a right knee disorder.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities contributed substantially to his death, and thus grants service connection for the cause of death.

The appeal for burn injury residuals of the right and left hands is dismissed. The claims for service connection for knee, ankle, and low back disorders are reopened and remanded due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Veteran's reduction of his rating from 10 percent to 0 percent for right knee patellofemoral syndrome with degenerative joint disease was not proper, and the 10 percent rating is restored.,A separate 10 percent rating for right knee instability is granted.

The Veteran's left knee disability, prior to November 28, 2016, was rated at 20 percent for limitation of motion and a separate 20 percent rating for dislocated semilunar cartilage with frequent episodes of 'locking', pain, and effusion. The right knee scars were rated at 10 percent.

The Board has denied service connection for back disability, acquired psychological disability (other than PTSD), sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability as there is no evidence of current disabilities during or after service.

The Board has granted service connection for a left knee condition, finding that the Veteran's current condition is related to his military service and specifically to his right knee condition. The decision also acknowledges conflicting opinions but leans towards the opinion linking the left knee condition to service.

The Veteran's right knee arthritis and acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD and depression) are granted service connection, while his bilateral hearing loss disability is denied.