Knee Board decisions

The Board has determined that there were duty to assist errors in the rating decision on appeal and remanded for additional development, including obtaining missing VA and private medical records related to the Veteran's bilateral knee disability.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for right and left knee disabilities due to a procedural error in providing notice of the Veteran's right to a hearing before VA.

The Board has remanded the claims for a bilateral foot condition, right knee disability, back disability, and acquired psychiatric disorder due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Veteran's right knee disability, including history of ACL, joint osteoarthritis and meniscus tear, is granted with a 10 percent rating for the entire appeal period from January 11, 2018, to the present.

The appeal was dismissed due to the appellant's death, and no service connection decision is made.

The Veteran's claim for TDIU is denied as it was not factually ascertainable that he was unemployable in the year prior to September 8, 2020.

The Veteran's TDIU claim has been dismissed because his combined rating is now at 100% due to service-connected disabilities, making the TDIU claim moot.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for right knee arthritis and residuals of right knee surgery, finding that there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding whether these conditions are related to service.

The Board has restored service connection for right knee strain, left knee strain, and lumbosacral strain due to the severance of these conditions in previous decisions.

The Board has remanded the case due to a need for additional medical examination and opinion regarding the relationship between the Veteran's left knee disorder and his service-connected left ankle disability.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for various knee and ankle conditions, as well as degenerative arthritis of the spine with spondylolisthesis, were denied. The evidence did not show that any of these conditions warranted a rating in excess of 10 percent.

The Board has granted service connection for sleep apnea but denied service connection for a left knee disability, finding that the preexisting condition was not aggravated by active duty.

The Veteran's appeals for increased evaluations and service connection have been dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal before a decision was made.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for shrapnel wound residuals of the left and right thighs have been denied. The left thigh condition remains at a maximum 40 percent rating, while the right thigh conditions are also denied with specific periods having no higher ratings.

The Veteran's claim for increased ratings of his left knee condition and service connection for a colon disability were granted. The left knee conditions received a separate rating, while the colon disability was granted service connection.

The Veteran's appeals for service connection on multiple conditions have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeal.

The Board has determined that the claims for higher ratings and entitlement to TDIU must be remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, specifically regarding the left fibula disability. The Veteran's other left leg disabilities were examined, but not his left fibula disability.

The Board has found that more development is necessary prior to final adjudication of the claims on appeal due to incomplete service treatment records. The Veteran's complete service treatment records have not been associated with the file, and VA must again attempt to obtain these records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to insufficient evidence. The issues of service connection for pulmonary lung condition, bilateral hearing loss, left knee injury, and IBS are being reviewed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service connection claims for various orthopedic disabilities should be remanded due to a duty to assist error. The claims will now include medical opinions considering the Veteran's lay contentions about his in-service pain and duties.