The Veteran's service-connected knee, ankle, shoulder, and elbow disabilities have not met the criteria for a higher initial evaluation throughout the appeal period.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's right knee, ankle, shoulder, and elbow disabilities are rated based on their current manifestations of degenerative joint disease without additional factors such as instability or limitation of motion. The existing ratings under Diagnostic Codes 5010 (for arthritis due to trauma) and 5260/5261 (limitation of flexion and extension) have not been met.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative joint disease of the right knee, degenerative joint disease of the right ankle, degenerative joint disease of the right shoulder, degenerative joint disease of the right elbow
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 2, 2009
- Citation
- 0912385
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 0912385.
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 Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his bilateral hips and right knee are being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors. The VA is required to obtain the Veteran's SSA disability benefits records, provide supplemental opinions regarding the ameliorative effects of medication on his hip and knee disabilities, and correct any duty-to-assist errors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his right and left knee disabilities, as well as his right knee scar. The RO must attempt to obtain all available private treatment records from the Tennessee Orthopedic Clinic.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for degenerative joint disease of the left (non-dominant) shoulder, right knee, and left knee are being remanded due to a failure to issue a Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC).,The Veteran's claim for TDIU is also being remanded as it was denied in the most recent rating decision without an SSOC having been issued.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities, finding that his combined schedular ratings did not meet the threshold requirement for consideration of TDIU. The case was remanded multiple times and ultimately denied again.
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