Knee Board decisions

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional examinations and opinions to determine the nature and etiology of his cervical, shoulder, back, knee, and extremity disabilities. The claims are being returned to the RO for further action.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to outstanding private and VA treatment records, incomplete employment information, and the need for examinations regarding his service-connected musculoskeletal disabilities and upper extremity neuropathies.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to incomplete records and need for additional examinations. The issues include knee, cervical spine, right shoulder, left wrist, eye socket injury, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus disabilities.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hip, knee, and low back disabilities due to her service-connected bilateral ankle disabilities. The case will be reviewed with a new medical opinion to determine if these conditions are aggravated by her service-connected ankle disabilities.

The Board has reopened the previously denied claim for service connection of a left knee disability and remanded the remaining issues. The Veteran's erectile dysfunction is also remanded.

The Board granted a separate 30 percent rating for right knee instability and a 20 percent rating for right knee dislocated semilunar cartilage, both under Diagnostic Codes 5257 and 5258 respectively, prior to November 15, 2017. These ratings are effective from the date of this decision.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to the need for a retrospective medical opinion on additional functional loss due to flare-ups since April 2005, and to obtain any outstanding VA treatment records.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a left knee disorder has been granted. Service connection for right foot pes planus and left foot pes planus is also granted. The rating for the acquired psychiatric disability, diagnosed as depressive disorder, remains at 30 percent prior to May 29, 2019, but increased to 70 percent since that date.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including degenerative joint disease of the right knee and depression, prevented him from securing and following substantially gainful employment prior to December 7, 2012. The case is remanded for extraschedular consideration.

The Board has remanded the claims for entitlement to service connection for right knee and right ankle disabilities due to a lack of a fully-informed decision on secondary service connection, specifically aggravation. A supplemental clarifying opinion is needed.

The Board denied the claims for service connection of a right knee disability and a left eye disability (retinal detachment) due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.

The Board has granted service connection for right and left knee osteoarthritis, finding that the current conditions are related to service despite initial denial.

The Veteran's service-connected left knee disabilities have been denied increased ratings. The left knee conditions are rated at 20 percent for instability and 10 percent for limitation of motion prior to April 11, 2016. Since June 1, 2017, the Veteran is rated at 30 percent for residuals of a total knee replacement.

The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for right hip and right knee disabilities due to their withdrawal. The claim for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD and bipolar disorder, is remanded for further development.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his right knee joint replacement and scar, have rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation. Therefore, entitlement to a TDIU is granted.

The claim for service connection for a back condition is remanded. The claims for degenerative arthritis of the neck and an unspecified head condition manifested as bilateral hearing loss are also remanded. The issue regarding whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen a claim for traumatic arthritis of the right knee remains pending.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not show unfavorable ankylosis of the lumbar spine or current neurological impairments other than service-connected sciatica, and thus no higher rating was warranted.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral knee osteoarthritis, finding that it is not directly related to service or secondary to his service-connected bilateral chondromalacia patella.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims of entitlement to increased ratings for lumbar strain, bilateral knees, and ankles, as well as her effective date claims. Additional development is needed due to new VA examinations conducted in September 2020.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals, requesting to be rated '100% P&T'. The Board dismissed the appeals as a result.