The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for service-connected patellofemoral syndrome (including degenerative joint disease) of the bilateral knees and strain of the cervical spine due to inadequate examinations in February 2018.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not meet the legal requirements set forth in Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016), which mandates that VA examinations for musculoskeletal claims must include joint testing for pain on both active and passive motion, in weight-bearing and non-weight-bearing.
- Claimed conditions
- patellofemoral syndrome (including degenerative joint disease) of the bilateral knees, strain of the cervical spine
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19193414
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · Granted: 23% (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 19193414.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection of spinal stenosis and strain of the cervical spine was granted with an effective date of February 3, 2021. The Board denied a request for an earlier effective date as there was no prior submission of a formal or informal service connection claim.
- Granted
The Veteran's spondylosis, degenerative disc disease, and strain of the cervical spine are found to be related to service. Service connection is granted.
- Denied
The Veteran's cervical spine disability has not been shown to warrant a rating in excess of 20 percent since July 11, 2016.
- Granted
The Veteran's initial increased ratings for cervical and thoracolumbar spine disabilities are granted, with the cervical spine rated at 20% effective November 18, 2013, and the thoracolumbar spine rated at 40%. The rating is based on the current functional limitations of the spinal joints.
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