The Veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for further development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of his low back disability and the severity of his left knee disability.
The deciding factor: The evidence suggests that the Veteran's current low back disability could be secondary to his service-connected left knee disability. Additionally, there is insufficient information regarding the severity of his left knee disability due to recent complaints of pain and instability.
- Claimed conditions
- severe discogenic disc disease, left knee chondromalacia patella
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 18, 2010
- Citation
- 1018400
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 1018400.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board denied earlier effective dates for service connection and granted increased ratings for lumbosacral strain and right ankle disability.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 10 percent rating for right knee limitation of extension and left knee limitation of extension, but denied ratings in excess of 10 percent for right and left knee chondromalacia patella.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for earlier effective dates and increased ratings for various knee and hip conditions, as well as granted a rating of 10 percent from June 16, 2022, for right knee instability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issues of entitlement to increased knee ratings and TDIU for further development, as the previous Board decision did not provide an adequate statement of reasons or bases and failed to ensure VA's duty to assist had been satisfied.
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