Knee Board decisions

The Veteran's PTSD was found to be incurred in service, resolving all doubts in his favor.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an increased evaluation of his service-connected lumbar spine disability, but granted service connection for a right knee disorder. The rating assigned was 20 percent.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including consideration of an extra-schedular evaluation and a VA examination to assess the current severity of his right knee disability.

The Veteran's left knee disability is rated at a noncompensable level, but the evidence shows that he meets criteria for a compensable rating based on degenerative joint disease. The Board has granted a 10% evaluation.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for higher initial evaluations for his left knee and right hip disabilities, finding that there was no evidence of ankylosis or other disabling conditions warranting a higher rating.

The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

The Veteran's claims for residuals of a left hand injury and bilateral knee disorder, including arthritis, are denied as there is no evidence of current disabilities or service connection.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for additional medical records from Atlantic Orthopedic Specialists.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for his right and left knee disabilities (chondromalacia of the patella with a history of arthritis), finding that the evidence does not support a rating higher than 10 percent. The reduction in rating for left knee laxity from 10 to 0 percent was upheld.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to the RO for further development, including obtaining additional medical records and scheduling a VA examination. The issues of higher evaluations for his service-connected knee, ankle, and bicep disabilities are pending.

The Veteran's appeal has been withdrawn and the case is dismissed.

The Veteran seeks a TDIU rating due to service-connected knee and shoulder disabilities. The RO has ordered an examination to assess the impact of these conditions on his employability, as he is currently employed but claims his disabilities have worsened.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for left and right total knee replacements have been granted, with a rating of 30 percent effective from February 1, 2009.

The Board denied service connection for carpal tunnel syndrome, degenerative joint disease of the knees and shoulders, and stomach disorder on secondary basis to a service-connected spine disorder. The Veteran's current disorders are not related to his service-connected spine disorder.

The Veteran's service connection claims for various disabilities, including those related to a right knee disability, are denied as the evidence does not support that these conditions were incurred or aggravated by active service.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the claim for service connection for a left knee disability, but denied the right knee disability. The Veteran's claims are therefore considered 'mixed' as some issues were granted while others were not.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher disability rating for internal derangement of the left knee was granted, with an effective date from July 5, 2007. A separate 10 percent disability rating was also granted for limitation of flexion of the left knee from July 13, 2004, to November 18, 2004. The Veteran's claim remains pending for a higher disability rating.

The Board has granted service connection for a low back disability as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right and left knee disabilities. The effective date of this grant is December 7, 2005.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied. The lumbar spine disability was not found to meet the criteria for a higher rating, and the left knee disability did not meet the criteria for an initial compensable evaluation.

The Board found no evidence of current right or left hip or knee and leg disabilities, thus denying service connection for these conditions.