The Board has remanded the veteran's claims for higher ratings for his service-connected back, right knee, and left ankle disabilities due to incomplete examinations and new regulations.
The deciding factor: The VA examination reports are inadequate for rating purposes and there have been regulatory changes that need consideration.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, post-traumatic osteoarthritis, residuals of a fracture of the tibial plateau of the right knee joint, residuals of a fracture of the talar domes of the left ankle joint
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 6, 2004
- Citation
- 0408839
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 0408839.
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 anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic osteoarthritis, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) as there was no evidence of a current disability during the period on appeal. The claims for sleep disorder, to include sleep apnea, and schizoaffective disorder were remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date for tinnitus to September 23, 2020 and denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, GERD, hypothyroidism, neck disability, PTSD, acquired psychiatric disorder, degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine, and osteoarthritis.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for a higher rating for left knee disability was denied, but a separate 10% rating for left knee instability was granted.
- Denied
The Veteran's lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc disease of the lumbosacral spine is rated at 20 percent prior to January 16, 2024 and denied for a higher rating.
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