The Board has remanded the claims for increased disability ratings and TDIU due to insufficient evidence regarding past severity of service-connected left knee disabilities. The Veteran needs a retrospective medical examination.
The deciding factor: The VA is required to obtain a retrospective medical opinion to determine the past severity of the Veteran's service-connected left knee disabilities, as the current evidence is insufficient for rating purposes over the applicable period.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) of the left knee, Left Total Knee Arthroplasty
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19183124
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19183124.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for service connection for PTSD, a right knee condition, or left total knee arthroplasty. The case is being remanded to provide an examination and opinion regarding these claims.
- Whole decision: Granted
Effective September 1, 2019, the Veteran is granted a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied an increased disability rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee DJD from October 1, 2008 to August 30, 2010 due to the lack of evidence showing limitation of flexion or extension that would warrant a higher rating.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted past due benefits for a temporary total evaluation of 100 percent for left knee arthroplasty, and an evaluation of 30 percent effective March 1, 2024. The decision also awarded Special Monthly Compensation based on housebound criteria from September 31, 2023, to March 1, 2024.
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