Knee decisions — 2025

The Board denied higher ratings for the veteran's left wrist and hand disabilities, as well as the effective dates for service connection, and also remanded claims for a rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee chondromalacia patella and subluxation.

The Board remands the claim for a higher rating for the right knee condition due to inadequate VA examination reports.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his back, neck, and left knee disabilities.

The Board denied readjudication of the claims for service connection and increased disability ratings due to a lack of new and relevant evidence.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims for degenerative arthritis with degenerative disc disease other than intervertebral disc syndrome and retrolisthesis L2-L3, degenerative arthritis, other than post-traumatic, right knee, lateral collateral ligament sprain (chronic/recurrent), left ankle, right ankle, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), tinea pedis, fallen arches, and left knee instability due to inadequate VA medical opinions.

The Board remands the claim for a new VA medical opinion to address whether the Veteran's left knee disorder is caused or aggravated by his service-connected right knee disorder.

The Board remands the claim for service connection for cause of death due to a need for additional evidence and an adequate medical examination.

The Veteran's service-connected cervical spine, bilateral upper extremity radiculopathy, and right knee disabilities preclude him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board granted service connection for a left knee disability, finding it at least as likely as not related to the Veteran's active-duty service.

The Board granted a rating of 20 percent for the right knee disability and a separate 10 percent rating for symptomatic removal of semilunar cartilage, subject to the statutes and regulations governing the award of monetary payments.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, dismissed the claim for a thoracic spine disability, and granted service connection for right knee strain, left knee strain and meniscal tear, left hip strain as secondary to a service-connected thoracolumbar lumbar spine disorder, and a generalized anxiety disorder and other specified depressive disorder.

The veteran's appeal requests for extensions to file an appeal on various rating decisions were denied, and the attempted appeals are dismissed.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings and remanded several service connection claims due to insufficient evidence.

The Board denied service connection for allergies, ankle strain, migraine, left knee condition, right knee condition, and thoracolumbar spine condition as the evidence did not support a current diagnosis of any of these conditions.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for various conditions was dismissed due to a late filing of the Board Appeal request.

The Board granted service connection for right knee strain with osteoarthritis, finding a link to the Veteran's active duty service.

The Board granted service connection for sinusitis, right knee disability, and thoracic spine strain, and assigned initial ratings of 40%, 30%, and 30% respectively. The claims for increased rating for left shoulder disability (osteoarthritic changes) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were also granted with the same respective ratings.

The Board granted service connection for left and right knee osteoarthritis but denied claims for bilateral hearing loss, bilateral tinnitus, left shoulder condition, right shoulder condition, and an initial rating higher than 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The Board denied service connection for major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, left knee disability, right knee disability, left shoulder disability, and low back disability as the evidence did not show a current diagnosis or functional limitation that could be considered a disability.

The Board granted service connection for a left knee condition, finding that the Veteran's injury during his deployment to Iraq in 2005 was related to his current left knee condition.