The Board has granted service connection for a low back disorder and reopened the veteran's claim for service connection of his left knee disorder. The low back disorder is found to be related to service, while the left knee disorder is found to have been aggravated by service.
The deciding factor: The August 2002 VA orthopedic examination provided new evidence that directly addressed the question of whether the veteran's current left knee disorder was etiologically related to service. The examiner concluded that the injury sustained in service, which resulted in instability and degenerative joint disease, is what brought on his subsequent knee problems.
- Claimed conditions
- Low back disorder, Left knee disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 24, 2003
- Citation
- 0303135
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0303135.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for annual clothing allowances for a left knee sleeve, A&D ointment, hydrocortisone cream, and incontinence briefs due to lack of service connection or evidence that these items cause irreparable damage to outer garments.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a low back disorder to correct duty to assist errors, as the previous VA examinations and opinions are inadequate.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for sleep apnea, a left knee disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), hiatal hernia, and diverticulitis. A 30 percent rating was also granted for the Veteran's generalized anxiety disorder effective February 26, 2021.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for hearing loss, psychiatric disorder, neck disorder, and radiculopathy of both upper and lower extremities to correct duty-to-assist errors.
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