Knee Board decisions

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including VA examinations and further medical opinions.

The Veteran's bilateral plantar fasciitis has been granted an initial 30 percent disability rating.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for additional development due to inadequate examination in January 2016. The Veteran needs a new VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected left knee disability.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining service records and conducting a VA examination. The issues of entitlement to service connection for various joint disorders are now pending before the Board.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a left hernia disability and increased ratings for his left knee conditions. The Veteran was found not to have a current diagnosis of a left or right hernia, and his claim for service connection must be denied.

The Veteran's left knee disability warrants a staged rating of no more than 10 percent prior to June 6, 2012, 100 percent from that date until June 6, 2013, and 30 percent (but no higher) from that date.

The Veteran meets the schedular criteria for a TDIU and his service-connected disabilities preclude him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and VA treatment records.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's pre-existing left knee and right wrist conditions did not undergo an increase in severity during service, and thus cannot be considered aggravated. As a result, the claims for service connection are denied.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for a Board videoconference hearing. The issues of entitlement to an increased rating for left knee osteoarthritis and whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen his right knee disability claim are pending.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of her service-connected lumbar spine and bilateral knee disabilities. The case will be returned to the Board after this additional development.

The Veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for his left knee disability, which was previously rated as status post repair of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) insufficiencies and multiple surgeries with degenerative arthritis, is being remanded due to the need for a VA examination. The most recent treatment records are outdated, and he underwent revision surgery in 2010.

The Veteran's service connection claim for cervical spine DJD is granted. The Board finds that arthritis in the Veteran's cervical spine was manifest to a compensable degree within one year of separation from service, warranting service connection.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining VA and service personnel records, as well as VA treatment records. The claims will be recharacterized to reflect the Veteran's belief that he has right leg arthritis in his right knee.

The Veteran's appeals for higher evaluations on several knee and back conditions have been dismissed due to his withdrawal of the appeal.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his chronic lumbar strain has been granted, with a current effective date of November 26, 2007. The Veteran is currently rated at 20 percent for this disability.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining updated VA treatment records and providing an adequate VA examination to assess his ability to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current disability of the neck/cervical spine that manifested during, or as a result of, active military service. The Veteran's service-connected hammertoes of the right foot are manifested by symptoms associated with multiple toes; they are not manifested by claw foot or other foot injuries. Prior to August 18, 2015, the Veteran's service-connected bilateral pes planus was manifested by mild symptomatology; it was not manifested by moderate symptoms with weight-bearing line over or medial to great toe, inward bowing of the tendo Achilles, pain on manipulation and use of the feet. As of August 18, 2015, the Veteran's service-connected bilateral pes planus has been manifested with marked deformity (such as pronation) and pain on manipulation and use accentuated; it has not been associated with pronounced symptoms such as marked pronation, extreme tenderness of plantar surfaces of the feet, marked inward displacement and severe spasm of the tendo achillis on manipulation. The Veteran's service-connected right knee disability is manifested by osteoarthritis with painful motion and the removal of semilunar cartilage that is symptomatic; it is not manifested by flexion to 60 degrees or less, limited extension, ankylosis, subluxation or lateral instability, impairment of the tibia and fibula or genu recurvatum. The Veteran's service-connected right knee disability does not meet the criteria for a separate evaluation of 10 percent for a right knee meniscectomy.

The Veteran's service-connected chondromalacia of the right knee resulted in flexion limited to 110 degrees, no limitation on extension, painful motion that results in some functional loss, pain on weight bearing, medial joint line tenderness, crepitus, recurrent daily swelling, slow antalgic gait, use of knee sleeves and a cane. The Board denied the claim for a disability rating in excess of 10 percent for chondromalacia of the right knee.

The Veteran's right knee DJD is rated at 10 percent, and the reduction of his migraine headaches rating to noncompensable was upheld. The lumbar spine DDD remains rated at 20 percent.