Knee decisions — 2025

The Board remands the claims for service connection for various disabilities, including OSA and hypertension, due to inadequate medical opinions.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for various service-connected disabilities, including stress fracture of the left foot with pain, right foot injury, right knee pain, left ankle tendonitis, and hallux valgus on both feet, as well as left ear hearing loss.

The Board denied service connection for various claimed conditions, including a back disorder, stomach disorder, acquired psychiatric disorder, and pain in the knees, feet, and shoulders, as there was no evidence of current disabilities or etiological relationships to service.

The Board granted service connection for tension headaches, left testicular pain, right knee disability, lumbar spine disability, and left lower extremity radiculopathy. The reduction in rating for posttraumatic stress disorder with major depressive disorder and alcohol use disorder from 70 percent to 50 percent was improper; a 70 percent disability rating is restored.

The Board granted an initial rating of 30 percent, but no higher, on an extraschedular basis for post-traumatic arthritis of the right knee and denied special monthly compensation for loss of use of the right foot.

The veteran withdrew his appeal for all issues, including a right foot condition, right knee condition, migraine, and thoracolumbar sprain.

The veteran withdrew the appeal for service connection claims related to depression, flatfoot, tinnitus, right knee condition, left knee condition, neck condition, right shoulder condition, and arthritis.

The Board granted service connection for lumbar spine degenerative disc disease with degenerative arthritis and dismissed the appeal for service connection for a left knee disability.

The Board remands the claim for a left knee disability to ensure the Veteran is provided with an examination addressing the etiology of his condition.

The Board granted service connection for tinnitus and remanded several claims, including those for back disability, left wrist disability, and others.

The Board dismissed the claims for service connection for various disabilities, including back, knee, foot, and ankle conditions, as well as TBI, neurological disorder, sleep apnea, respiratory complaints, asthma, GERD, anxiety, PTSD, and other related conditions. The Board also granted an initial 10 percent rating for left hip strain with painful limited extension and denied a compensable rating for the same condition.

The Board granted service connection for a gunshot wound in the left upper arm, a left shoulder strain (secondary to the gunshot wound), and left and right knee disabilities.

The Board denied service connection for a cardiac disability, blood clots, and a right knee disability as the evidence did not support a nexus to service or service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied service connection for a left knee disorder, cervical spine disorder, and cervical radiculopathy as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's military service.

The Veteran's right knee limitation of motion was granted a rating of 30 percent prior to March 27, 2025, and the right knee meniscal disability with locking and effusion was granted a rating of 20 percent prior to April 18, 2018. However, ratings in excess were denied.

The Board is remanding the case to address issues related to a higher rating for the service-connected right knee disability and TDIU, as these matters are inextricably intertwined.

The Board granted various disability ratings for the veteran's right knee conditions and shin splints, including a 10 percent rating from October 28, 2015 for right knee cartilage, semilunar, removal of, symptomatic; a 20 percent rating from April 23, 2019 for right knee instability (including shin splints); and a 20 percent rating from February 7, 2021 for right lower extremity, shin splints.

The Board remands the matter for an appropriate retrospective examination to determine the severity of the Veteran's service-connected left knee disorder and instability prior to April 16, 2018.

The Board granted a 20 percent disability rating for right knee instability but denied an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for the right knee condition.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for left knee limitation of extension and left knee strain with ACL tear, as the evidence did not support a higher rating.