Knee Board decisions

Service connection for lumbosacral strain and cervical strain has been granted.,Service connection for bilateral hip iliopsoas tendonitis, right knee degenerative arthritis, left knee degenerative arthritis, and left elbow condition have been granted. Service connection for right shoulder condition is pending.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection and rating issues related to various conditions, including right knee condition, right hand condition, left hand condition, sleep apnea, cervical spine condition, and left upper extremity radiculopathy. The case is returned to the RO for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hip and knee osteoarthritis, finding that the Veteran's conditions are at least as likely as not related to his military service.

The Veteran's lumbar spine disability, right knee and left knee disabilities, right hip and left hip disabilities, diabetes, and hypertension have been granted service connection. The Veteran is currently receiving a 20% rating for his lumbar spine disability.

The Board denied service connection for right hand amputation of thumb, index finger, middle finger, and ring finger.,The Board also denied service connection for a left knee disorder, hypertensive vascular disease (claimed as hypertension and systolic hypertension), aortic aneurysm, and skin cancer.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development to obtain service treatment records and VA clinical documentation, as well as a VA examination for his left fifth finger fracture residuals.

The Board has granted service connection for right and left hand cold weather injury residuals, as well as for the Veteran's right and left foot disabilities due to cold weather. The ratings for his right and left knee disabilities are remanded.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for service connection are denied.,The Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations and opinions.,New evidence has been received to reopen the claim of entitlement to service connection for a low back disability, but further examination is needed.,A VA examination is required to determine if the Veteran has bilateral hearing loss or skin disabilities related to his military service.,The Veteran's claims for service connection for a skin disability and left knee disability are remanded due to the need for additional medical examinations and opinions.,A VA examination is required to determine if the Veteran's left knee disability is related to his military service.

The Veteran's left knee disability was granted a 20 percent evaluation prior to June 4, 2020. The issue of entitlement to TDIU is remanded.

The Veteran's right and left knee strains are rated at 20 percent each, effective from April 1, 2019.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were remanded due to incomplete records and need for further examination. The rating for the lumbar spine disability was denied, as it did not meet the criteria for a higher rating prior to November 19, 2020, and after that date in excess of 40 percent.

The Veteran's left knee disability is being remanded for further evaluation and to obtain any outstanding private treatment records. He must also be scheduled for a VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected left knee disability.

The Board has determined that additional evidence was added to the claims file after the last Statement of the Case and before the case was remanded. The Veteran and his representative were given an opportunity to waive RO review, but did not respond within the required time frame. As a result, the case is being returned to the RO for readjudication.

The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for bilateral ankle and knee disorders due to insufficient development in prior decisions.

The Board has determined that the claims of service connection for left and right shoulder conditions, as well as left knee postoperative degenerative joint disease with surgical scar, need to be remanded due to inadequate rationale in previous VA examination opinions.

The Board has granted a TDIU effective from April 24, 2009 to February 11, 2013, finding that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevent him from securing and following substantially gainful employment during this period.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional examinations and evaluations to determine the current severity of his gastritis, somatic syndrome disorder with unspecified depressive disorder, lumbar spine degenerative joint disease, left lower extremity radiculopathy, right lower extremity radiculopathy, left knee internal derangement (flexion), left knee lateral instability, and tinnitus disabilities. The Veteran also needs clarification on the nature of his claimed balance disability.

The Board has found that there was not substantial compliance with the January 2023 remand directives and thus, another remand is warranted for further development.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations to assess the current severity of his service-connected disabilities.

The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's left and right knee disabilities, finding that the evidence did not meet the criteria for higher ratings under VA rating criteria.