The Veteran's irritable bowel syndrome is currently rated at 10 percent, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted. The claims for right and left knee disabilities are remanded as additional development is needed to determine if service connection can be granted. The claim for lumbar spine disability remains inapplicable due to lack of service connection.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's irritable bowel syndrome has been manifested by frequent episodes of bowel disturbance with abdominal distress, which does not more nearly approximate or equate to severe symptoms such as diarrhea or constipation with more or less constant abdominal distress. The VA examination report is adequate for rating purposes and the evidence does not support a higher rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Right Knee Disability, Left Knee Disability, Degenerative Disc Disease and Degenerative Joint Disease of the Lumbar Spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 22, 2012
- Citation
- 1228719
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 1228719.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected knee disabilities are rated at 10% each, and the Board finds that higher ratings are not warranted based on the evidence of record.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities are not related to his active service, and thus denied both claims for service connection.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of a right knee disability, finding that there is no evidence to support an etiological relationship between his current condition and his military service.
- Denied
The Veteran's left knee disability is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board finds no evidence of clear and unmistakable error in assigning an effective date of June 19, 2002.
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