The Board has reopened the Veteran's previously denied claims for service connection for a left knee disability and common variable immune deficiency. However, additional development is needed as new VA examinations are required to determine the etiology of these conditions.
The deciding factor: New evidence received since the final denial includes medical opinions indicating that the Veteran’s left knee disability may be secondary to his right knee disability and his service-connected sinusitis may cause his immune deficiency. However, the current evidence is insufficient for a decision on the merits due to conflicting opinions regarding causation.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee chondromalacia, common variable immune deficiency
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2018
- Citation
- 18142584
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 18142584.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
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 claims for a higher initial rating for left knee limitation of extension and an increased rating for left knee chondromalacia.
- Dismissed
The veteran withdrew his appeal for higher ratings of his left and right knee conditions, and the Board has no jurisdiction to review these issues.
- Dismissed
The proposed reductions of the veteran's right and left knee chondromalacia ratings were dismissed as there was no final rating action taken, and the disabilities remained rated at 40 percent during the applicable period.
- Partly granted
The appeal for service connection for sleep disorder is dismissed, and the Veteran's claims for service connection for alcohol use disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, somatic symptom disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and lower back strain are denied. The Board granted a 70 percent rating for PTSD.
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