The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for his left knee disability has been dismissed as he withdrew the appeal.,The Veteran's right ankle disability claim is reopened and will be decided on its merits. The Board requested additional evidence to support this decision, including medical records from his 2011 surgery.,The Veteran was granted compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for right lower extremity numbness and tingling due to a surgical procedure in March 2011.
The deciding factor: The Veteran withdrew his appeal for an increased disability rating for his left knee disability.,New evidence, including medical records from the 2011 surgery, was submitted that supports reopening of the right ankle disability claim. The Board requested additional information to determine if the surgery caused or aggravated the Veteran's right ankle disability.,The VA examiner found that the March 2011 surgery did not cause the Veteran’s right lower extremity numbness and tingling, but it was an event that could not have been reasonably foreseen. Therefore, the surgery is considered the proximate cause of this additional disability for purposes of compensation under § 1151.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Knee, Right Ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 22, 2019
- Citation
- 19113303
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 882 · Granted: 17% (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 19113303.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for various knee and back disabilities, as well as radiculopathy in the right lower extremity (RLE) and left lower extremity (LLE), have been granted. Service connection is also granted for a right hip disability secondary to his back disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected right and left knee disabilities have been granted, with a rating of 30% for each knee. The Veteran is also entitled to special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for increased disability ratings for his bilateral knee disabilities due to insufficient detail in the VA examination report. The Veteran needs a new VA examination to address whether he has subluxation, instability, or semilunar cartilage condition of either knee and what causes his reports of giving way.
- Granted
The Veteran's right knee extension was rated at 50 percent effective May 12, 2023. The left knee extension was rated at 40 percent effective May 12, 2023.,Effective September 13, 2018 to May 12, 2023, the Veteran's bilateral knee flexion was most severely limited to 25 degrees. Effective May 12, 2023, the Veteran's bilateral knee flexion is rated at 10 percent.
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