The Veteran's right and left knee disabilities, as well as his sleep apnea, were not incurred in or aggravated by service. The Veteran's cervical spine disability was granted based on new evidence submitted since the last rating decision.
The deciding factor: Service treatment records did not document any complaints of, treatment for, or diagnosis related to right and left knee disabilities. The Veteran's current knee disabilities are more likely than not a progression of known pre-existing conditions. His service-connected cervical spine disability was granted based on new evidence submitted since the last rating decision.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, Right knee disability, Left knee disability, Right ankle disability, Left ankle disability, Obstructive sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- May 18, 2017
- Citation
- 1717068
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 1717068.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
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 claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for initial compensable ratings for obstructive sleep apnea and headaches, finding that the evidence does not support a finding of persistent daytime hypersomnolence or other manifestations consistent with a compensable disability rating under the criteria established by Diagnostic Codes. The matter is remanded to obtain additional information from the Veteran regarding his headaches and their impact on his daily life.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection of obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to his service-connected residuals of left foot 5th metatarsal fracture.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 10, 1997, for a 10% disability rating for his right ankle disability is denied as there was no CUE in the previous decisions.
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