The Board found that the earliest possible effective date for the grant of service connection for mechanical low back pain, instability of the right knee, and instability of the left knee is November 18, 1997.
The deciding factor: The RO received an informal claim on November 18, 1997, which was considered as a new claim for service connection. The Board found that this date was the earliest possible effective date based on the receipt of new and material evidence to reopen the claims.
- Claimed conditions
- mechanical low back pain, instability of the right knee, instability of the left knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2009
- Citation
- 0901056
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased ratings for right knee conditions due to insufficient medical evidence.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent rating for limitation of flexion and a 10 percent rating for instability, but denied an increased rating for limitation of extension.
- Denied
The Board denied higher ratings for the Veteran's left knee disability, including for limitation of flexion and instability.
- Partly granted
The Board granted increased 20 percent ratings for limitation of motion of the left and right knees prior to their respective total knee replacements, but denied ratings in excess of 10 percent for instability of both knees and in excess of 30 percent for total knee replacements.
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