The veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a 20 percent rating for postoperative residuals of a left knee injury is denied as there is no evidence within the year prior to July 14, 2003 that his disability increased in severity.
The deciding factor: There was no medical evidence showing an increase in disability prior to July 14, 2003, which is one year after the veteran's claim for a higher rating. The effective date of the current rating must be based on the earliest date as of which it is factually ascertainable that an increase occurred.
- Claimed conditions
- postoperative residuals of a left knee injury
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- September 25, 2006
- Citation
- 0630134
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · 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 0630134.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including postoperative residuals of a left knee injury, traumatic arthritis of the left knee, and degenerative joint disease of the right knee, were found to be contributory causes of his death. As such, service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including obtaining service treatment records and VA treatment records. He will also undergo VA examinations to evaluate his left knee and left middle finger disabilities.
- Denied
The Veteran's application for vocational rehabilitation and training under Chapter 31, Title 38, United States Code was denied because it was determined that achieving a vocational goal was not reasonably feasible due to his service-connected and nonservice-connected disabilities preventing him from successfully pursuing employment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling VA examinations. The Veteran's claims of increased ratings for his left knee disability and right hand fractures are being reviewed.
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