The Board has remanded four issues related to osteoarthritis and post-traumatic stress arthritis of the Veteran's knees and ankles due to a lack of compliance with VA’s duty to assist in obtaining relevant private treatment records.
The deciding factor: The decision was remanded because the Veteran did not have all relevant private treatment records, specifically from V.G., M.D. and Atlanta Orthopedic and Arthroscopy Center, which were necessary for proper adjudication of his claims.
- Claimed conditions
- osteoarthritis of the left knee, osteoarthritis of the right knee, post-traumatic stress arthritis of the left ankle, post-traumatic stress arthritis of the right ankle
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2019
- Citation
- 19184533
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 Board granted restoration of a 40% rating for osteoarthritis of the left knee, effective July 1, 2009, and denied an increased rating in excess of 40% for the same condition as well as entitlement to TDIU.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his lumbar spine herniated nucleus pulposus L3-4 with intervertebral disc syndrome, left knee osteoarthritis, and right knee osteoarthritis.
- Partly granted
The Board denied increased ratings for the Veteran's bilateral knee disabilities and lumbar spine disability, but granted a 20 percent rating for degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine with spinal stenosis from April 4, 2017 to July 13, 2020.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have been found to render him unable to physically care for himself, thereby granting special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance.
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