The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including left total knee replacement and pilonidal cyst, do not render him unemployable without regard to his age. The Board finds that the evidence does not show he is unable to work due to these conditions.
The deciding factor: VA treatment records do not show the Veteran is unable to work due to his service-connected disabilities, which include left knee pain and functional limitations.
- Claimed conditions
- left total knee replacement, pilonidal cyst, surgical scar, left knee joint replacement
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 17, 2020
- Citation
- 20004340
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,456 · 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 20004340.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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 remanded the case due to issues related to a lumbar spine disability. The Veteran's claims for service connection are not currently addressed.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's service-connected conditions do not result in loss of use of the bilateral lower extremities, and therefore he is not entitled to special monthly compensation based on such.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors, including insufficient notice and rescheduling of VA examinations. The Veteran is required to attend new VA examinations.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions, including prostate cancer, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, type II, diabetic nephropathy and end stage renal disease with dialysis, diabetic peripheral neuropathies of various extremities, erectile dysfunction, lumbar spine strain with degenerative arthritis and intervertebral disc syndrome, and bilateral knee replacements, do not meet the criteria for service connection based on direct evidence or presumptive exposure to herbicide agents. The Board also found that there was no qualifying exposure to toxic environmental exposures during service.
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