The Board denied service connection for right knee DJD and low back disability as they were not caused or aggravated by the veteran's left knee DJD, nor related to any incident of service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not support a causal relationship between the veteran's current disabilities and his military service or service-connected condition.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative joint disease (DJD) of the right knee, Degenerative disc disease of the low back
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 4, 2009
- Citation
- 0903829
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran was granted increased ratings for his left and right knee disabilities, as well as separate ratings for instability of both knees, effective February 15, 2021. The veteran's TDIU claim from September 25, 2014, to February 12, 2021, was granted.
- Partly granted
The veteran's chronic eczema was rated at 30 percent, and his right and left knee DJD were each rated at 20 percent from February 27, 2007.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case for an examination to determine the nature and etiology of any current psychiatric disorder, as well as to properly evaluate the current severity of the veteran's bilateral knee condition.
- Denied
The veteran's claims for higher initial ratings for PTSD, bilateral tinnitus, cervical and lumbar spine disabilities, sleep apnea, left ear hearing loss, and service connection for hypertension and post concussion syndrome with headaches and short term memory loss were denied.
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