The Board has remanded the case due to issues with left knee instability and tear, and granted a separate rating for instability from July 12, 2017.
The deciding factor: VA found that there is objective evidence of left knee dislocated semilunar cartilage with frequent episodes of 'locking', pain, and effusion into the joint, warranting a higher rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Knee Lateral Meniscus Tear
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- January 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19100772
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,757 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19100772.
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 pes planus, left knee lateral meniscus tear, right knee chondromalacia, and left knee chondromalacia were all denied increased ratings. The Veteran was already in receipt of the maximum schedular rating for his left knee lateral meniscus tear.
- Denied
The Veteran's left knee disability, including a torn lateral meniscus and degenerative arthritis, is rated at 20 percent effective July 14, 2021. The rating is for instability of the joint.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right and left knee disabilities, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his military service.
- Granted
The VA determined that the veteran's service-connected left knee disorder does not warrant a rating higher than 30 percent due to instability alone, but granted him an additional 10 percent rating for arthritis with painful limitation of flexion. The effective date is not specified as it was part of a previous reduction and subsequent restoration.
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