The Board found that the Veteran's left knee disability did not have its clinical onset in service, was not due to or aggravated by a service-connected disability, and is not presumed to be related to service. The Veteran's lumbar spine disability was also denied as it was determined to be unrelated to service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner found no evidence of traumatic arthritis of the left knee during service and opined that any degenerative changes were more likely due to obesity and recreational activities, not a service injury.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic Arthritis of the Lumbar Spine, Traumatic Arthritis of the Left Knee
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 15, 2012
- Citation
- 1239133
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 1239133.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his service-connected left knee disability, finding that the evidence did not warrant a higher rating under relevant codes due to limited motion and x-ray evidence of arthritis. The current 10 percent evaluation is maintained.
- Denied
The Veteran's traumatic arthritis of the left knee is currently rated at 10 percent disabling, and the Board has determined that a higher rating is not warranted based on the evidence of record.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is granted a 70% disability rating prior to May 31, 2016 and a 70% disability rating from September 1, 2016. The Veteran's traumatic arthritis of the left knee is granted a separate 20% disability rating for lateral instability starting from September 14, 2012.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is granted at a rating of 70 percent, but no higher. The right inguinal hernia and left index finger fracture are both denied as not compensable.
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