The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate examinations and requests for records from St. Mary’s Medical Center.
The deciding factor: The examination provided was insufficient for rating purposes, and additional evidence is needed to determine the current severity of the Veteran's left knee degenerative changes.
- Claimed conditions
- left knee degenerative changes
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 20, 2019
- Citation
- 19164380
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 19164380.
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for left knee degenerative changes was granted as secondary to service-connected right ankle tendonitis. The claim for eye disability was remanded for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for right ear hearing loss and denied initial ratings in excess of 10 percent or 20 percent for various conditions, including left ear hearing loss, hypertension, GERD, cervical spine degenerative joints with herniated nucleus pulposus, lumbar spine herniated nucleus pulpous with radiculitis down posterior leg, right knee effusion/degenerative changes, left knee degenerative changes, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for total disability due to individual unemployability for the period prior to March 7, 2011 based on his service-connected rheumatic heart disease and left knee degenerative changes.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a higher initial disability rating for left knee degenerative changes, finding that his symptoms did not warrant a rating in excess of 10 percent.
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