The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for a left knee disorder, diagnosed as degenerative joint disease (DJD), finding that there was no evidence of chronic left knee pathology in service or within many years thereafter and that the current condition was not related to his active duty service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner opined that the metal fragment from the veteran's 1965 injury had little impact on the development of DJD, attributing it more likely to the veteran's weight, which exceeded 350 pounds. The Board found this opinion more probative than the private physician's opinion.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease (DJD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 6, 2009
- Citation
- 0904402
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 an initial disability rating of 40 percent for lumbosacral strain, DJD, from December 17, 1997 to June 3, 2022, and the effective date for service connection for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy was also set at December 17, 1997. However, a higher rating or TDIU was denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The claim for service connection for a left knee condition (to include patellofemoral syndrome and DJD) is remanded for readjudication, as new and relevant evidence has been received sufficient to reopen the claim.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of the service connection claim for a thoracolumbar spine disorder, but remanded the claims for radiculopathy.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for an effective date prior to April 5, 2022, for service connection of degenerative arthritis, DJD, and RPPS of both knees. The evidence did not show probative evidence of knee limited extension before this date.
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