The Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral knee disorders was denied. The appeal for a temporary total evaluation due to left knee disability requiring convalescence is also denied. The Veteran's TDIU claim is granted effective from October 8, 2009.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the service connection claims and the treatment in March 1998 for left knee arthroscopic synovectomy was unrelated to any service-connected disability. The Veteran's combined rating due to his service-connected disabilities is at least 70%.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine, Right and left lower extremity radiculopathy
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- September 20, 2010
- Citation
- 1035517
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 1035517.
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 has remanded the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for his lumbar spine and right hip disabilities due to a duty to assist error. The effective date for DEA benefits is granted as May 1, 2014.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date and higher initial rating for his back disability is denied. The effective date remains March 29, 2021, as the earliest date of claim. An initial rating in excess of 20 percent for the back disability from March 29, 2021, is also denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's low back disability and right leg radiculopathy are granted service connection, but left leg radiculopathy is denied.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for TDIU, finding that his service-connected disabilities do not preclude him from securing or maintaining substantially gainful employment.
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