The veteran's appeal includes claims for service connection and increased ratings for various knee conditions, as well as a request for an earlier effective date. The case is being remanded to obtain additional medical records, conduct examinations, and determine the appropriate disposition of these claims.
The deciding factor: The case involves multiple issues related to the veteran's knee disorders and requires further examination and review to properly address all aspects of his claims.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of right ankle strain, hypertensive vascular disease, residuals of a right elbow injury, internal derangement of the right knee with mild degenerative changes, internal derangement of the left knee with mild degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2004
- Citation
- 0407079
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,547 · Granted: 20% (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 0407079.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hypertensive vascular disease, concussion, diabetes mellitus, seizure disability, bilateral pes planus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (alcohol use disorder in sustained remission and PTSD). The effective date for hypertension was denied as the Veteran's claim was received within one year of the PACT Act.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal involves multiple service-connected and non-service-connected conditions, with some issues being remanded for further evaluation. The primary issue is the need to determine if additional evaluations are warranted for various disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted a TDIU based on his combined service-connected disabilities, including back disability, migraines, and depression. The decision finds the Veteran unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal of service connection for hypertensive vascular disease due to untimely filing. The 20% rating for back disability was reinstated, but the appeal for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability is remanded.
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