Knee Board decisions

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating, including those related to left hip, left knee, right shoulder disabilities, and headaches. The AOJ is required to obtain additional development, such as SSA records and a medical opinion regarding the aggravation of headaches by her service-connected left shoulder disability.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of medical evidence linking the Veteran's right knee strain to his service. The claim will be reconsidered with additional examination and opinion.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been readjudicated due to the submission of new and relevant evidence. The Board is remanding these claims as they involve complex medical issues.,Service connection has not been established for tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, left knee disorder, or right knee disorder.

The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection of left ankle, right knee, and left knee conditions due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors. The Veteran's representative argued that his bilateral knee conditions are also secondary to a service-connected lumbar spine disability, which was not made in the pre-decisional period.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for a temporary total rating and a 30 percent rating for his left knee TKR, finding that the evidence did not support these requests.

The Board has decided to remand the claims of service connection for left and right knee strains due to a lack of an adequate medical opinion in the original decision. The case is being returned to the AOJ for further review.

The Veteran's left knee total replacement is granted an increased rating of 60 percent, but no higher. The extension of a temporary total evaluation based on severe post-operative residuals following left knee TKR is denied.

The Board has granted earlier effective dates of August 8, 2019 for service connection and increased rating for the Veteran's lumbosacral strain, right knee strain with meniscal and anterior cruciate ligament tears, and OSA with asthma. The appeal for a higher evaluation for OSA with asthma was denied.

The Veteran's request for an increased rating for his service-connected right knee osteoarthritis was denied. However, he received a 10 percent rating for limitation of extension and instability of the right knee in the October 2022 decision. The appeal is denied as there are no past-due benefits to award attorney fees.

The appeal seeking service connection for left knee pain, joint pains, and headaches is dismissed.,The cervical spine disability (claimed as neck injury), bilateral elbow pain, and psychiatric disorder are remanded.

The Veteran's migraines are granted with a 30 percent evaluation from May 8, 2021. The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, left ankle strain, right knee pain, and thoracolumbar strain (low back pain).

The Board has granted service connection for lumbosacral degenerative arthritis and degenerative disc disease, right hip osteoarthritis, and right knee degenerative arthritis as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right ankle sprain with degenerative arthritis and left total knee arthroplasty with residual surgical scar associated with left knee patellofemoral syndrome with degenerative joint disease.

The Board has granted service connection for left knee and low back disabilities, but the claim of a compensable rating for foot condition is remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for left knee pain, left shoulder pain, lower back pain, and right knee pain on the basis that these conditions began during active service.

The Veteran's initial disability ratings for left knee PFS and instability have been denied. The current evaluations are at 10 percent.,For the period from June 30, 2022, the Veteran's disability ratings for left knee PFS and instability remain at 10 percent.

The Veteran's left knee condition, bilateral pes planus, and back condition are all granted. The Veteran is awarded a 10% rating for her left knee condition. Service connection is granted for bilateral pes planus. However, the service connection claim for the Veteran's back condition is remanded due to insufficient medical opinion.

The Veteran's anxiety disorder is granted a 70 percent disability rating, but erectile dysfunction, hemorrhoids, and right knee scar post-surgery are denied initial compensable ratings.

The Veteran's gout is related to his service-connected diabetes mellitus type II, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition. The issue of whether the bilateral knee disability is caused or aggravated by the service-connected gout remains pending as it was not addressed in the January 2024 rating decision.

The Veteran's service connection for sleep apnea, including as secondary to the service-connected disabilities of degenerative disc disease, lumbar spine with spinal fusion and bilateral knee degenerative arthritis, is denied because there is no medical evidence that his obesity was caused or aggravated by a service-connected disability.

The Board has remanded the claim for service connection for right knee strain due to an inadequate VA examination. The Veteran's in-service knee injuries are considered, but a new examination is needed to provide sufficient evidence.