The Board has denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected postoperative ruptured patellar tendon of the left knee and postoperative scars of the left knee.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under applicable VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- postoperative ruptured patellar tendon, postoperative scars
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- July 2, 2004
- Citation
- 0417983
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,599 · Granted: 37% (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 0417983.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded several claims related to the Veteran's left knee disability and postoperative scars, including entitlement to higher ratings and an earlier effective date for TDIU. The appeal is also dismissed due to the grant of CUE in a prior rating decision.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his service-connected left knee disability.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected lumbar strain, including DDD and spondylosis at multiple levels, was granted with various schedular ratings from October 1, 2002 to August 1, 2010. The case also addressed a temporary total disability rating based on surgical treatment.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected residuals of a laceration injury to the left palm and little finger with postoperative scars are rated at 20 percent, which is the maximum schedular rating available under VA's Rating Schedule.
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