The Board has determined that the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for left knee instability and chondromalacia, as well as his claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss are remanded due to the need for additional examination.
The deciding factor: The most recent VA examinations do not provide an accurate picture of the current severity of the Veteran’s left knee conditions. The Veteran should undergo a new VA examination to assess these issues.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Scar, Right Knee (associated with residuals of right knee meniscal tear and strain), Left Knee Instability, Left Knee Chondromalacia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19163673
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 19163673.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 70% rating for PTSD from November 25, 2015 to August 12, 2024 and a 40% rating for the right shoulder disability. It also granted 10% ratings for both feet and 20% ratings for knee patellofemoral pain syndromes.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, entitlement to TDIU, and SMC based on housebound status.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
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