The Board has granted a disability rating of 20 percent for the veteran's service-connected right knee disability, finding that it more nearly approximates moderate knee disability. The back and left knee disabilities are not found to be related to the service-connected right knee disability.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that the veteran would have developed degenerative joint disease in both knees regardless of his right knee disability, thus denying secondary service connection for the back and left knee disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disability, Left knee disability, Osteochondritis tubercule, right tibia, postoperative with degenerative joint disease (right knee disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- January 30, 2004
- Citation
- 0402715
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,500 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0402715.
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 claim for service connection of a back disability, finding that there was no evidence to support a nexus between his current condition and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claim for a back disability due to incomplete service records and failure to consider all available evidence, including in-service treatment records from F.E. Warren Air Force Base.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU claim for bilateral knee disabilities and his right and left knee scars have been granted. He is now rated at a combined 60% disability rating from June 1, 2018 based on bilateral factors for his bilateral knee disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran's rating for residuals status post lumbar fusion was reduced from 40 percent to 20 percent effective October 25, 2023. The reduction was granted as there was no evidence of actual improvement in the Veteran's condition prior to this date.
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