The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for degenerative joint disease of the left hip and an increased rating for a right knee disability, finding that the current condition did not begin in or was caused by service.
The deciding factor: Degenerative joint disease of the left hip was not incurred in or aggravated by active service.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease of the left hip
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 2, 2004
- Citation
- 0400038
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 685 · Granted: 36% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0400038.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for degenerative joint disease of the right hip, left hip, and left shoulder, as well as PTSD. The claim for a higher rating for the right knee scar was denied.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board granted service connection for degenerative joint disease of the right and left hips, as well as degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine and lumbar spine, resolving reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran's surviving spouse.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected left hip, left shoulder, and cervical spine disabilities due to his failure to report for scheduled VA examinations without good cause.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that remand is necessary for all of the matters on appeal due to rating errors and lack of adequate examinations. The Veteran's claims include seeking an earlier effective date, increased ratings for hip disabilities, and a TDIU.
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