Knee decisions — 2020

The Board has dismissed the appeals for initial increased ratings for cervical spine, bilateral knee, and bilateral ankle disabilities as well as the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss due to the Veteran's death.

The Board has remanded the cases for further development and examination. Service connection is granted for degenerative changes of the lumbar spine and medial compartment narrowing of the left knee.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal for the right knee disability claim, which was secondary to a service-connected bilateral ankle strain.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a right knee condition and for TDIU. The right knee claim is pending, while the TDIU claim was granted.

The Veteran's bilateral knee disability, diagnosed as arthritis, is granted service connection. Service connections for bilateral hip disability, diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, and erectile dysfunction are denied.

The Board has found that there has not been substantial compliance with the remand instructions and thus, the claims for service connection for right and left knee conditions are being returned to the RO for further development.

The Veteran's increased rating claims for his bilateral knee disabilities have been denied. The ratings assigned are within the maximum allowable under current diagnostic codes.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for frostbite, both big toes and bilateral hearing loss. The claim for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative arthritis of the right knee was also denied.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for various conditions, including right knee disability, left knee disability (secondary to right knee), back disability (secondary to bilateral knee disabilities), bilateral lower extremities radiculopathy (secondary to back disability), and depression (secondary to service-connected disabilities). The remand is due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the etiology of these conditions.

The Board finds that additional development is warranted before adjudication of the Veteran's appeal, including a new VA examination for his right knee disability and consideration of temporary total disability following surgery.

The Board has determined that additional development is needed to determine the nature and etiology of any left knee disorder, including reviewing service treatment records and obtaining a VA examination.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete private treatment records and a need for an addendum medical opinion regarding the left knee disability.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection and increased ratings has been remanded due to the need for further examinations and opinions regarding his psychiatric condition, hip disabilities, and bunionectomy residuals. The Board also requested additional information on compensation under 38 C.F.R. § 1151.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for right knee osteoarthritis, finding that there was no evidence to support a direct or secondary service connection.

The Board has remanded several cases for further evaluation due to the need for additional examinations and consideration of functional loss.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of degenerative joint disease of the left knee as it is not related to his service-connected right knee disability and is not otherwise linked to an in-service injury or disease.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss is denied.,The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for multiple noncompensable service connected disabilities prior to July 31, 2014 is remanded due to lack of legal entitlement.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for right shoulder osteoarthritis is remanded as the VA medical opinion did not consider lay statements and was based on absence of treatment in service records.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a sleep disorder (presumably sleep apnea) is remanded due to lack of VA medical opinions regarding the nature and etiology of his claimed condition.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for left knee disability is remanded as no VA medical opinions have been obtained.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral knee disabilities do not preclude him from obtaining and maintaining employment.

The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and remanded the cases of left knee disability and left ear hearing loss.

The Board has remanded the cases due to a lack of recent VA examination that includes specific testing and information about flare-ups, which is required by new regulations.