Knee decisions — 2025

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a 10 percent evaluation of lumbar spine osteopenia, finding no evidence of an increase in disability within one year prior to March 22, 2021.

The Board remands the claim for a right knee condition to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors and obtain an adequate medical nexus opinion.

The Board denied service connection for fatigue, bilateral hearing loss, low back, musculoskeletal shoulder, musculoskeletal knee, bilateral leg, and testicular conditions due to a lack of evidence showing current disabilities.

The Board remands the claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) as it is inextricably intertwined with the remanded right and left knee increased rating claims.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating or service connection for any of the conditions appealed.

The Board denied readjudication of the claim for service connection for a right knee condition and remanded claims for service connection for cervical spine, left knee, and thoracolumbar spine conditions.

The Veteran is unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation due to her service-connected disabilities, and therefore, a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is granted.

The Board denied service connection for a sleep disorder other than insomnia and denied increased ratings for migraine headaches, PTSD with alcohol use disorder, insomnia disorder, and residuals of TBI, and TDIU prior to October 27, 2021. However, the Board granted a 50 percent rating for migraine headaches since June 11, 2021, a 70 percent rating for PTSD with alcohol use disorder, insomnia disorder, and residuals of TBI since May 1, 2019, and a TDIU solely due to service-connected psychiatric disabilities as of October 27, 2021.

The Board granted service connection for a right knee disability as secondary to the late Veteran's service-connected left knee strain and lumbosacral strain disabilities.

The Board granted initial disability ratings of 30 percent for GERD, and increased ratings to 20 percent from September 10, 2024, for left and right knee limitations of extension. The TDIU was also granted.

The Board denied service connection for a left knee disability and a right hip disability, finding that the evidence does not support a link between these conditions and the Veteran's active service.

The Veteran was granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) from September 22, 2007 to December 18, 2015 due to the combined effects of his service-connected disabilities.

The Board granted service connection for allergic rhinitis and sinusitis, reopened the claims for lumbar spine and bilateral knee disabilities, and granted an initial rating of 70 percent for PTSD with TBI.

The Board remands the claim for a new examination to address the inadequacies in previous medical opinions regarding the Veteran's right knee disability and its potential relationship to his service-connected left hip gunshot wound residuals.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, lumbar condition, left knee condition, right knee condition, left hip condition, and right hip condition as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred in or caused by the Veteran's military service.

The Board denied a compensable rating for the left knee scar status-post surgery and granted an initial rating of 60 percent but no higher for OSA with COPD prior to March 1, 2022. The claim was remanded for further development.

The Board granted service connection for a lumbar spine condition, right knee condition, left knee condition, and tinnitus. The OSA claim was remanded due to a duty to assist error.

The appeal seeking service connection for various conditions was dismissed due to a procedural defect in the docketing of the appeal.

The Board granted service connection for a right knee disability based on new and relevant evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The appeal for earlier effective dates for right and left knee instability disabilities was dismissed as the issues were identical to those decided in a previous Board decision.