The Veteran's claim of service connection for a bilateral knee condition has been reopened. The Board finds that an addendum opinion is necessary to determine the nature and etiology of any patellofemoral pain syndrome or chondromalacia in his knees.
The deciding factor: An addendum opinion is needed to address whether the Veteran's pre-existing patellofemoral pain syndrome/chondromalacia clearly and unmistakably did not aggravate during service, and if so, determine its etiology.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral knee condition
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2020
- Citation
- 20000304
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,500 · Granted: 29% (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 20000304.
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 Board denied service connection for a shoulder condition, bilateral knee condition, and right hip condition. The Veteran's claims were based on current diagnoses of these conditions but the evidence did not support an in-service injury or disease.,The Board also noted that there was no nexus between the current disabilities and service due to lack of in-service complaints or injuries.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to inadequate development of evidence, specifically failing to provide a VA examination or medical opinion regarding his claimed bilateral ankle, knee, low back, and left shoulder conditions. The claims are being returned to the AOJ for further action.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claim of service connection for a bilateral knee condition due to inadequate medical opinion in the June 2024 VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral knee conditions and obstructive sleep apnea are being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors. The Board is unable to make findings on the merits of these claims at this time.
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