Knee decisions — 2021

The Veteran's left knee bipartite patella with knee and meniscal tear is currently rated at 10 percent, but the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,The Veteran's left knee instability is currently rated at 20 percent, but the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,The Veteran has been assigned a maximum 30 percent rating for IBS effective October 21, 2020. The claim of an earlier effective date remains pending.

The Veteran's claim of service connection for a right knee disability, including as secondary to his service-connected left knee disability, has been remanded. The Veteran also had his lumbar spine disability rated and the rating in excess of 20 percent remains unchanged.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for chronic obstructive sleep apnea has been granted, but the appeal is dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal.,Service connection for a left knee condition, including as secondary to the Veteran’s service-connected back disability, was denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current left knee condition and that it did not manifest within one year after separation from service.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus are found to have had their onset in service.,There is no evidence of a current gout disability or functional impairment due to gout.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection were denied. The claim for a separate rating for left knee instability was granted, but only effective from June 12, 2015.

The Board has found that further evidentiary development is necessary and remands the case to ensure compliance with prior remand instructions. The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for her knee conditions and service connection for a genitourinary condition are being remanded due to inadequate examinations and incomplete medical records.

The Veteran's service-connected right and left knee patellofemoral syndrome with degenerative joint disease have been rated at 10 percent each, but the Board found that these ratings are not adequate as they do not account for functional loss due to pain during flare-ups.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee degenerative osteoarthrosis based on limitation of motion prior to June 29, 2011 and from August 1, 2011, as well as a separate rating for left knee instability prior to August 18, 2020, and to a rating in excess of 10 percent thereafter. The Veteran's claims are remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for right, left shoulder disorders, lumbar spine disorder, right and left hip disorders, right and left knee disorders, and right and left ankle disorders due to in-service repetitive loading of heavy loads from HEMTTs or rocket tubes. The appeals are now pending with VA for further examination and opinion.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate VA medical opinions regarding the Veteran's left knee disability prior to June 15, 2009. The Veteran needs a new addendum opinion from an appropriate examiner.

The Board has determined that there was not substantial compliance with its prior remand instructions and the appeal must be remanded once again to afford the Veteran another opportunity for a VA examination.

The Veteran's left knee instability is now rated at 20 percent, reflecting moderate instability. The patellar femoral syndrome remains at a 10 percent rating due to painful motion.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hip and knee conditions as secondary to service-connected IVDS with lumbar stenosis with DDD due to insufficient medical evidence in the record regarding the etiology of these conditions.

The Veteran's claim for an increased initial rating for his right knee disability is being remanded due to the need to obtain Social Security Administration (SSA) records and review the expanded record.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to insufficient medical opinions and need for additional evidence. The issues include hearing loss, tinnitus, low back disability, foot disabilities (callouses and bunions), right hip disability, and left knee disability.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's torn left rotator cuff, finding that it is secondary to his service-connected left knee disability. The rating assigned remains at 10 percent.

The Veteran's left knee disability was granted a 40% rating from December 22, 2018 to November 17, 2020 for limitation of motion. The right knee disability was denied in excess of 60%. A separate 20% rating was granted for instability.,The Veteran's left knee condition has been rated based on its current severity and not due to any service connection.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to an inadequate VA examination and failure to provide a statement of reasons and bases regarding potentially outstanding relevant records. The Veteran's right knee disability needs to be evaluated again with an adequate examination, and any private treatment records need to be obtained.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right knee conditions were denied. The rating for the internal derangement with chondromalacia patella, status post meniscectomy was denied as it did not meet the criteria for a higher rating prior to February 28, 2008. The rating for degenerative arthritis was also denied.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine, left knee ACL tear with patellofemoral pain syndrome, and right knee patellofemoral pain syndrome have worsened significantly since his last examinations. He should be reexamined to reassess the severity of these disabilities due to the significant time that has passed since those prior examinations. Additionally, a TDIU claim is remanded as it is inextricably intertwined with the claims for higher initial ratings for his low back and left and right knee disabilities.